Battle City Shadows
by yamiyugifan01
Summary: All these crazy characters keep appearing in Battle City for the Pharaoh to deal with on the path to his destiny. What if there was one person who had more secrets than the Duel King? How exactly can she help? Who is she? Where did she come from? Does the magic she possess really have the power to help defeat the enemy? And how can they trust her when they see who she works for?
1. Chapter 1

Okay, just to say why I started writing this story, a while back, when I wrote my very first one, people said that they liked the addition of the OC that had a past connection to Atem's reign as Pharaoh of Egypt. I started playing around with more ideas, and fixed up the OC a bit, as well as read some more reviews. People said they wanted to see here in the Battle City and Millennium World arc, so I figured I would start off the saga by doing the Battle City story, with the OC fresh and ready to join in the fight against the shadows. I guess I should stop rambling on, and let you guys read. I hope you enjoy the first chapter.

Disclaimer: The OC introduced is mine. Other than that, all properties of this story belong to the current TV station broadcasting Yu-Gi-Oh and its creator, Kazuki Takahashi.

* * *

**Chapter 1**

The youth sighed quietly to himself… he could not believe he was actually doing this. It was one thing for him to normally leave in a hurry to go to a meeting, but one scheduled this late at night? Even he figured he was crazy to do such a thing. Sure, he had his men here to guard him from people who might try to harm him, but it was still an absurd thing to be doing what he was at this moment.

Glancing out the car window, the young man gazed out at the city lining of Domino, all the bright lights of households still awake shone down on him like hundreds of tiny suns. He quietly turned his head back to face out the driver's window, rolling up his own as he did so. He reminded himself to thank his driver later, something he hardly ever did, considering how the man had left his home this late at night to come drive his boss around.

He reached into his pocket, pulling out the sleek cell phone he possessed. He glanced at the digital analog clock the monitor displayed on the front: 1:30 a.m.

He huffed indignantly; the woman who had called obviously had plenty of free time, considering the museum exhibit wasn't fully completed yet. He could consider this a 'VIP tour', but even then, why could she not have scheduled it earlier? He had known for years that he could never understand women and how they behaved, but for all the strange ones he had seen, this woman took the blue ribbon easily.

Letting his eyes drift shut slightly, as his brother had woken him earlier so he could attend the meeting, he began to remember what had gotten this started. The fact that that broadcast appeared on the news earlier, the woman herself talking about the new exhibit opening at the museum, was not even that shocking. It was that not even seconds after it ended, she had personally called him… with a proposition. At hearing that word, he had perked up slightly, based on what she told him of the card. He knew it would give him a chance to finally defeat his rival since the humiliation some time ago in the unofficial duel. How the young man had managed to pull off the monster summon of the century, he would never hope to know. Of course, he had thought the young man cheated, but he couldn't say so openly.

The woman had given him little information on the card, as well as the other proposition she had planned, but that was all he really needed. His deck thrived on power, and if this card truly had the strength the woman said it did, he was all for hearing more about it. So he had decided to take a short nap, and told his brother to wake him later in the night so he could go attend the meeting. Of course, how his brother woke him was not how he intended, but at least now, he was on his way to the museum.

A few minutes later, the car glided to a gentle stop, and the young man opened his eyes. Glancing out the window, he saw one of the guards he brought with him open the car door, allowing him to exit the vehicle. Reaching down and grabbing a hold of his briefcase, he regally stepped out onto the concrete sidewalk, his trench coat drifting in the wind behind him.

As he walked up the steps to the museum, he glanced down at the briefcase in his hands. What was inside always reminded him of why he loved the game of Duel Monsters; it was all about power to him. The duel disk symbolized the respect he had earned, the ranking he had gotten beating every opponent he came across. Then again, that one young man he could never beat; he swore to himself he one day would.

He didn't know why, but whenever he looked at anything that looked remotely Egyptian, something inside his mind just began screaming at him, and it would be no different in the museum. Of course, he couldn't understand what it was saying, but then again, he didn't really want to. Ever since that mess in Duelist Kingdom, he thought he began to believe in magic, but his stoic demeanor always convinced him otherwise. He just shook his head, and continued on his way, not even fazed as the glass doors opened up automatically to allow him entrance to the building.

Walking in, he was not surprised to see a group of four people standing not far inside the building. The three men each wore a black tuxedo, a white turban on each of their heads, and perfectly trimmed black beards. He hardly even took in more than the outward appearance of each man, as his attention was focused on the woman standing in front of them.

She wore a simple long tan dress with her shoulder exposed, black trim aligning the upper arm area of the dress. Her long black hair extended down to near the middle of her back, two strands pulled under her ears in front of her collarbone, tied together with golden bands. She wore a gold necklace with the Eye of Udjat in the middle, a tan headband tied in the middle with a green gem, all of which brought out her sea blue eyes. It was definitely she: Ishizu Ishtar.

Her stoic demeanor never changed as the young man approached her, silver briefcase in hand, "Thank you for coming Seto Kaiba."

The Kaiba Corp CEO narrowed his eyes slightly, confused as to why it seemed they were the only people here, "Where are the other guests?"

Ishizu let the tiniest of smirks appear on her face, "I did say this was a private exhibition. I only invited you because it makes discussing business so much easier."

The brunette man heard the sound of faint footsteps behind him, and let his eyes drift back toward the door, still keeping an eye on the Egyptian woman. From behind, he could see two other men, each with a turban and black beard, stand in front of the glass double doors.

One of them spoke, sparking an interest in the CEO's mind, "We've locked all the entrances. Nobody's allowed in or out."

Kaiba glanced at the man adjacent to his right side before looking back at Ishizu. Something was definitely wrong here, and whatever plan this woman had, it had sparked an interest. He was a gaming champion; if she was planning on challenging him to one, he knew he would get out of it no problem.

Figuring diplomacy would work and trying to edge his way to what the problem was, the youth spoke, "It's only been one minute, and I'm already bored. If you don't tell me what this is about," he turned around quickly to emphasize his point, "I'm leaving now."

His heard still turned to focus behind him, he saw Ishizu lower her head, her sea blue eyes disappearing as she let them drift shut, "Excuse us. We've faced a string of thefts recently and we have to be careful."

Kaiba cocked an eyebrow lightly as she continued, "You may leave any time you wish Seto Kaiba. However, I believe it is in your best interest to see all of what we have to offer."

Kaiba let his lips fall into a frown as he spoke back, "Really now?" Before he continued, he smirked, a characteristic quite unlike the young CEO, "And how is it you know what's best for me?"

Ishizu glanced behind her quickly near one of the hallways. For a moment, Kaiba could have sworn he glimpsed another figure disappear behind the wall, before he saw Ishizu turned back to him, "Please, follow me."

Without another word, the Egyptian woman turned and walked down the same hallway Kaiba thought he saw another person disappear behind. He considered his options briefly; on one hand, he could walk out of the door right now, head back to his company, forget this happened, and forget defeating his long-time rival. On the other hand, he could follow Ishizu, possibly get an unstoppable card, and at worst, have to endure a 10-minute history lecture.

He smirked lightly before following. He had put up with lectures in school, and if putting up with this one meant defeating the Duel King, he would have to stand it. Gripping his briefcase a bit tighter, he allowed Ishizu to lead him to the Egyptian wing. All the while though, he could not shake the feeling that something, or _someone_, was watching him.

As they neared the Egyptian artifacts, Kaiba glanced around, half-listening to Ishizu's words, "Kaiba, do you believe in destiny?"

The CEO carefully hid a conceited scoff, "Does it matter?"

Ishizu continued without bothering to pay attention to his reaction, "Ancient Egyptian thought that the true path of one's life was predetermined, because history repeats itself through the ages in a never-ending circle. They would say it wasn't your choice to come here, for it was destined the two of us would meet."

Kaiba mentally swore; he had heard enough of this garbage all throughout Duelist Kingdom, and he certainly was not going to hear any more of it now. He stopped walking forward, daring to speak back to the Egyptian woman, "Look, all this stuff might interest you, but I didn't come here for Egyptian History 101."

Even then, he couldn't help but briefly glance around at the different artifacts lining the walls of the exhibit. Sarcophagi of ancient pharaohs, tablets depicting messages left for others, and many others things he could not identify. He saw Ishizu glance back at him, her sea blue eyes piercing his own crystal color.

Figuring he could continue on, as she made no move to speak, he let more words cut through the tense air, "I came here because you said it would be worth my while, but it seems more like you've wasted my time. If there's a point to all this, then please get to it, because I have a company to run. You said you had an exclusive offer for me. I know everything about Duel Monsters and nothing can stop Exodia, so quit the charade and tell me what's going on."

Ishizu allowed her previously crafted smirk to fade, "All in good time Kaiba. Duel Monsters was based off of an Egyptian game that not many of us know about. It was played by Ancient Egyptians for power and was extremely dangerous."

Kaiba managed to resist the urge to shrug, "Who cares?"

"Maximillion Pegasus did."

Kaiba silently grew more interested than he was letting on. Ever since Duelist Kingdom, he had heard neither hide nor hair of the Duel Monsters card game creator. He had heard after the duel with the current Duel King, he had taken ill. Even then, Pegasus' true problem had been troubling Kaiba immensely, but he didn't want to waste time figuring it out.

"He fell in love with the game and decided to reinvent it for modern times."

Kaiba narrowed his eyes, "What's your point?"

Despite her growing impatience, Ishizu continued from there with tolerance for the CEO, "I'm getting to it. Unbeknownst to other duelists, Pegasus created a series of all-powerful cards never revealed to the public. Its really no surprise he kept the strongest cards for himself."

Seeing Kaiba's angry expression relax a little, Ishizu let that smirk once again appear on her face, "And Pegasus wasn't the only one who knew the game's original secrets. There are more mysteries about the ancient history of games yet to be discovered. However, there is one person I have also enlisted the help of, as she knows more about the origin of the duel monsters game than anyone else on the planet."

Kaiba scoffed, "So what? To me it just seems like a bunch of worthless history."

Ishizu sighed, "Kaiba, you let your impudence control your persona. I have a feeling the acquaintance I have called in will be of great assistance to you in the next few days. Now follow me, and I will reveal the reasons I have called you here tonight."

As she walked off, Kaiba began to try and sort the hundreds of thoughts racing through his mind. At first, Ishizu had said she called him here with a proposition for a powerful Duel Monsters card. But now, she was saying there was something else? Something, someone that would be able to help him? And to think that this person Ishizu knew had more knowledge of Duel Monsters than even its creator did.

The gears in Kaiba's head started spinning like crazy; he knew there were a lot of experienced players out there, in America, Europe, and many other places. He began to think of all the powerful duelists he knew, but no females that seemed important came to mind. If this girl really knew as much as Ishizu said she did, and Pegasus knew less than said person, why had she not been confronted, the facts pried out of her?

The CEO shook his head once; driveling on these thoughts was wasting valuable time. He wanted to see if Ishizu had really spoken the truth about the powerful card, and a few add hours of sleep wouldn't hurt.

* * *

The female tensed up; she could sense it clear across the city. Someone was having a dream, and it involved _him_. The only words she could hear emanating from the dream were words she had heard all too often in her childhood, even when they were just playing a game.

_To face my destiny…_

Truth be told, she had lost count of how many times those words had been spoken between the two of them. Even when growing up with him, there was always some secret he was keeping from her. She did know that their father had taken him to several places, some with secrets, some without, all in preparation for his coronation. Then, only days after, the war had begun… the war of shadows…

She drew her jacket tighter around her body; she knew she was living in the past, but with her, it was on a whole different level. She knew she shouldn't even be here today, much less on Earth. Then again, she had given up her freedom for him, so he could live the life she promised their mother she would help him live. But now, that curse was the only thing between her, and returning to where she should have gone ages ago.

She knew of the impending danger that was coming, and figured he knew too. She had spent months as an inside token for the Egyptian exhibit curator, a 'long-distance family friend'. Even with what she found out, it was not nearly enough. True, she did know whom the mastermind behind all this was, but the bad news was that he could easily counteract her magic, if she used the standards. And she had sworn to the gods she would not use any of her divine magic while down here. At least, until it came to protecting the ones she swore to watch over. Her body shook just thinking about the fight she knew would come. It was starting out just like the war of shadows had… she was afraid it would end the same...

A common enemy… an evil source of magic… a battle of souls… a victor… a loser… the world either bathed in light, or shrouded in darkness…

She heard a small noise come from near her waist, on her belt to be exact. She looked down where she kept her own dueling deck strapped in the belt pocket. She placed her hand over the cards, the cards she had so carefully collected and constructed into the deck she knew mirrored her very soul. She closed her eyes in concentration, ignoring the wind blowing through her hair.

Seconds later, her eyes fluttered back open, the sea-green orbs mirroring the ocean's movement in the distance. So, it was finally almost time…

Slowly, she got up, making sure all her possessions were on hand before walking back toward the museum. Time was not of the essence, but she hated being late. And considering not even Ishizu's guards knew she was here, she had to make her entrance discreet.

She sighed once; she had plenty of distance to walk, she could think of a plan on how to get in on the way there. But now, what really bugged her mind was figuring out a way to make sure the plan of convincing the CEO went off without any problems.

A groan escaped her lips; she had a feeling this meeting would be more challenging than a duel monsters game.

* * *

The CEO kept his gaze locked in front of him as Ishizu led him down another flight of stairs. Was it really too much trouble to keep exhibit artifacts on a higher level of the museum? Or at least, use the elevator? Then again, he didn't know if this building housed one, even with all the underground levels.

"I've secured the most precious artifacts down here, carvings that depict the earliest known game played in Egypt. I'm sure you will find it most familiar."

As Ishizu turned to him, Kaiba couldn't help but notice down here, her voice carried itself with power, "Kaiba, behold the origin of Duel Monsters."

He looked at the archway that led to the dimly lit room beyond. It was almost as if Ishizu's voice was pecking its way into his mind, begging him to press on and walk into the room. To witness the artifacts, find out about the history of his favorite game.

The CEO really was more interested in getting the card, meeting Ishizu's acquaintance, and leaving, but even he knew when to exhibit patience. He walked forward, briefcase held tightly in his grip, as he waited for Ishizu to flick on the light switch.

Even though the room hardly had any light, he could still at least see the wall in front of him, and stopped within a few feet of it. Not far behind, Ishizu flipped the switch, the room bathing itself in the light. Kaiba lifted his head to look at the tablet behind the glass case, but not even the CEO could prevent his eyes from widening.

"It… can't be! These carvings look like duel monster cards." The brunette youth gazed at the different carvings on the tablet. Many of them depicted well-known monsters to the game, basic ones. However, what immediately caught his eye were five precariously placed carvings, in the shape of a star image drawn in the center of the tablet. Looking closer, his inner thoughts were confirmed; it did indeed look like the monster he thought was unbeatable in the game.

"Then… your stories are true."

Ishizu walked forward to stand a few feet behind the CEO, and began talking, not even registering he seemed zoned-out on her, "I see you've come to your senses. Furthermore, there is a theory, even believed by my acquaintance, that in ancient times the monsters were real. Egyptian sorcerers summoned monsters to Earth to do their bidding."

Ishizu's face took on a serious outlook as even thoughts about what she knew of the past began to race through her mind, "But even they began to see the monsters could not be controlled. They destroyed countless villages, and brought the Earth to the brink of destruction. The citizens turned to the Pharaoh for help. Though he could not permanently defeat the monsters, he enlisted the help of the fabled guardian, and both of them used their magic to seal the monsters away in stone tablets. The combined force of their magic brought peace to the world. However, over time, evil sorcerers learned to control the monsters, and released them from their prisons. With the army of powerful monsters they had, the sorcerers believed not even the guardian could stop them. They betrayed the Pharaoh, and waged an all-out war against him."

Taking note of Kaiba still staring at the tablet, Ishizu took a couple steps over to the next one, her slipper-covered feet noiseless on the tile floor, "This is the one you must look at."

Kaiba, still overcoming his shock, turned his attention to the Egyptian curator, "This carving was the reason you were called here tonight." Countless thoughts began swimming through his head; screaming at him to leave the museum, leave all this magic nonsense behind him. But he could not; it was like an invisible force was keeping him locked here, like a prisoner unwillingly behind steel bars. He followed in Ishizu's footsteps, keeping his gaze locked on her as his body turned parallel to the ancient tablet.

"This tablet depicts one of the greatest battles of the war, between the Pharaoh, his guardian, and their greatest opponent. Closely examine this artifact if you will. I promise you, as of this moment Kaiba, your life will never be the same."

As she watched him turn his head, the Egyptian turned to look behind her, near one of the pillars attached to the roof and the ceiling, the foundation keeping it stable. Noticing the look on the young person's face, they gave each other a quiet nod, before turning their attention back to the tablet, taking note of Kaiba's reaction.

As soon as his attention focused on the tablet, Kaiba's eyes went narrow with shock. His gaze locked on the person depicted on the left, his words came out with an obvious nervous tone, "That's the Pharaoh?"

In all a quick moment, he took in the similarities between the Pharaoh, and his rival. Even etched in stone, their identities could have easily been mixed up, starting with the hair, and right down to the little pyramid puzzle, "But, that's Yuugi!" Glancing upward briefly, he noticed another familiar carving, "And the monster above him, is the Dark Magician!"

Though Kaiba did not follow Ishizu's gaze to the carving etched in the middle, its eyes lit with anger, almost like a candle flame, the woman spoke again, oblivious to how quickly Kaiba could even take all this in, "And on the left stands his greatest opponent. That's you Kaiba."

Glancing toward the left side of the tablet, he did notice what she meant; even while wearing a turban, the carving could have passed for an ancient drawing of the CEO himself. Their facial structure was remarkably similar, and Ishizu's next words actually managed to send a shiver down his spine.

"If you still doubt my words, look at the monster above him. It's the Blue Eyes White Dragon."

Kaiba's eyes went wide with complete shock; he didn't even begin to fathom how all this could be possible. A man that looked like him, controlling the CEO's favorite monster, fighting against the Pharaoh, supposedly Yuugi, with the Dark Magician aiding him? And scratch whatever was depicted in the center; just even looking at one of the two men or monsters drove Kaiba's mind nuts.

Ishizu continued on with her lecture, "The hieroglyphics read that the sorcerer one day marched into the Pharaoh's chamber, and challenged him and his legion of mighty magicians to a legendary duel, with the fate of the world at stake. The Pharaoh accepted the sorcerer's challenge, and their epic battle began. Both opponents unleashed their mightiest monsters against each other. The sorcerer, fighting to control the world, against the Pharaoh, fighting with his loyal followers to save it. Today, 5,000 years later, this ancient battle is being played out once again. Do you see? Do you now believe in destiny Kaiba?"

The CEO was actually tempted to agree; the thought was trying to push its way to the front of his mind, he could feel it. However, all other logical thoughts banned together and pushed the ridiculous idea out of his head.

His grip on the silver briefcase tightened, his crystal blue eyes still locked on the carving, "This can't be real. There's no way. This piece of rock has got to be a fake." However, he could not remove his gaze from the Pharaoh, how similar he looked to his infamous spiky-headed rival.

Ishizu's eyes darted to her right, and a small flash of light signaled the Egyptian. She turned back to face the CEO, "If you won't trust my words, then you must look back in time and experience part of the battle first-hand. This, I can help you do with my Millennium Necklace."

Not even mentioning the other part of magic that would be needed to send the CEO back in time, the golden trinket began flashing, causing said CEO to take a few steps back, his free hand raised in self-defense. Ishizu placed her hands in a diamond-shape around the pendant.

It began flashing brighter, and she closed her eyes in concentration, "Now, open your eyes, and see into the past!" As the room brightened to the point where Kaiba could've thought he was standing on the sun, he raised an arm to block the light out. He barely had time to register another presence beside Ishizu before the light overtook him.

* * *

The young girl glanced over at Ishizu, who was taking in a few deep breaths, tired from concentrating so much magic into the feat they had just pulled. "I know he may need to see the past for himself to believe, but even the gods are telling me now was not the best time."

Ishizu looked at her female companion, "The gods may think so, and I do not doubt them. However, if we are to put our plan in motion to help the Pharaoh, then Kaiba needs to know of the past now. If not, he will never agree to the terms I will discuss with him when we bring him back."

The female sighed as a black ball of magic formed in her hands, and both watched as it began to drip toward the ground like blood, enveloping the girl in a dark aura. Closing her eyes, she let a few more words escape her lips, "I still say it's a bad idea…"

Ishizu watched her companion disappear, the last words lost on the wind. Her eyes narrowed in a tiny bit of concern as she glanced at the tablet behind her, particularly, the stone carving in the middle. _I hope you're wrong…_ But of course, she would never have said that out loud.

* * *

All he could register was the feeling of darkness surrounding him. Cautiously opening his eyes, the ceiling above him was indeed an endless void, and the thought of that scared him. Looking down, his eyes went wide again. He saw along the wall intricate designs of Egyptian writing and decoration, as well as what appeared to be a throne of sorts. Then, he noticed the two men.

"What is this?"

Standing below him on two elevated platforms were what he figured to be sorcerers, if he really had been sent into the past. Laying on the ground on either side of the platforms were three stone tablets, and he could only figure one thing, based off of the lecture.

_A duel…_

The sorcerer on the left, wearing a purple turban, and wielding a cane-hooked staff raised to the sky, spoke in a haunting, echoing voice, "_I hereby declare a challenge to the Pharaoh. By the rights of tradition, duel me if you are not a coward._" It was only if he looked closer would Kaiba see that this sorcerer was him as depicted on the tablet.

Several men, wearing cloaks, standing behind the Kaiba lool-a-like began chanting, their bodies surrounding in a blue aura, "_Magic powers, heed my cry, release the monster trapped inside. Magic powers, heed my cry…_"

As the chant continued, one of the stone tablets stood up straight, the monster on it being depicted as a dragon. Suddenly, the image flashed, and a transparent image of the beast appeared. Its body was covered in black and scarlet red scales, its pearly white fangs ready to be used in battle.

The man standing opposite the sorcerer cried out in a mighty voice, "_As the Pharaoh's loyal follower, I shall accept the challenge and duel you, you traitor!_" Another tablet stood up on its own, this time, a much more familiar blue dragon with a large mouth and white fangs appearing, ready to fight.

The dragons stood facing one another, their battle cries echoing through the chamber. The man, whom Kaiba had not noticed sitting on the throne, moved, growing tense it seemed. It was then Kaiba also noticed a familiar pendant hanging around the man's neck, but that hardly fazed him.

The CEO briefly turned his head, figuring he heard a noise in the shadows behind him. However, due to the impending blackness, anything that was there was probably being kept a secret from him. To try and divulge his mind from it, he turned back to the duel.

The Pharaoh's follower magician cried out again, "_I banish you all to the shadow realm!_" The magician's dragon opened its large mouth, a scarlet and yellow ball of magic forming. The dragon let it loose, everyone watching as it collided with the scarlet and black-scaled dragon. Obliterated in one blow, the tablet lowered itself back to the ground as the dust dissipated.

A huge bolt of light flashed from the sky, and destroyed the men behind the evil sorcerer as Kaiba looked on, "Oh no, what is this?"

Quick as a flash, the evil sorcerer raised another tablet, the image coming to life faster than the dragon had. This monster Kaiba knew well; a green genie with gold jewelry, a small purple turban, and a lamp sitting below it.

The Pharaoh's follower spoke with a commanding tone, "_Your La Jinn may be strong, but did you think I have not come prepared? It is no match for the combined fury of my dragons!_"

As soon as those words left the magician's lips, a second tablet stood up, the men behind the sorcerer chanting as it did so, "_Let two be one, let two be one…_"

"_Unite my dragons! You shall be unstoppable!_" As the second transparent monster appeared, a small green dragon, bolts of lightning erupted between the two before they were engulfed in light. When it disappeared, a giant golden dragon with green eyes had taken its place.

The Pharaoh's follower raised his staff, "_Attack! Bombard the traitor with your Blazing Inferno!_"

Doing as told, the dragon let its attack loose, La Jinn not standing a chance. Wiped out, nothing but dust left, more of the men on the evil sorcerer's team disappeared as another crack of lightning struck.

The evil sorcerer glanced up toward the throne, "_You have not won yet Pharaoh. You think one of your pathetic minions have the magic to defeat me? I will shatter them into non-existence before your very eyes!_"

Kaiba glared down at the sorcerer from where he was floating above, "That sorcerer's a big mouth loser! How can Ishizu even compare him to me?"

The sorcerer raised his staff, turning to face the opposing magician, "_You should have finished me off when you had the chance, for I will now call forth, the beast of ultimate destruction! Now Pharaoh, this is the end!_"

The young man in the throne leaned forward a bit, suddenly intrigued. He knew his magician follower had the upper hand; why was this evil one preaching about winning?

The evil sorcerer raised his arms to the sky, "_My loyal monsters, you have all served me well. Wake from your eternal slumber and obey me one last time._"

Two tablets stood at hearing these words, one a centaur image, the other of an ox with an axe gripped firmly in its hands.

"_Behold, I will now offer their life forces, and fuse them into the legendary dragon!_"

As quickly as the transparent beasts appeared, light exploded from their chests, both orbs coming together. A roar erupted before the light vanished, but everyone knew that now, the real fight had started. As soon as the dust cleared up, even the golden dragon seemed to falter. The beast standing in front of it was at least three times its size, with sparkling silver scales, silver fangs and claws, and startling crystalline blue eyes.

"_Behold, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon!_"

From where he was in the air, Kaiba was grateful gravity wasn't working for him at the moment, because he would have hit the earth from shock by now, "Blue-Eyes White Dragon?"

As the Pharaoh stood from his throne, Kaiba caught movement to his right, and glanced over, knowing for sure he heard something this time. A faint growl came from the darkness as the evil sorcerer spoke again, "_Now, dragon, destroy them all with your White Lightning._"

In one quick movement, the dragon opened its large mouth, a blast of lightning heading right for the golden dragon. The attack sliced it neatly in half before it vanished in a shower of dust. The attack continued, destroying all of the other tablets the Pharaoh's follower was commanding.

As the other side of the dueling field erupted into flames, the evil sorcerer seemed to smile, as if he enjoyed all this destruction. Kaiba narrowed his eyes in self-doubt; surely, he and this man could not be one in the same, or even have similar personalities?

The evil sorcerer raised his staff in victory as the Pharaoh looked at him in shock, "_Hahahaha, victory is mine!_" This was short-lived though, as both men then turned to look up at the black void behind Kaiba. At first, the CEO thought they saw him, until it donned on him; the growl he heard earlier.

Turning his head slightly, he saw a black flash of light erupt from the darkness before it flew down to earth. Impacting the ground like a meteorite, the Pharaoh and evil sorcerer each lifted their arms to defend themselves from the backlash magic. But, one could see the anger on the evil sorcerer's face as the dust vanished.

Standing between the sorcerer and the fire was what appeared to be a black cat of some sort, though from a distance, Kaiba couldn't make out the details. However, it was clear that whatever grudge the cat and the sorcerer held, it ran deep.

The Pharaoh seemed to smile in relief as the sorcerer raised his staff toward the cat, "_So, the fabled guardian has finally shown up? If I can eliminate you, then there will be no one left to defend the Pharaoh!_"

The sorcerer glanced over at the monarch, the hatred in their eyes like daggers being thrown at one another. The sorcerer turned back to face its opponent, as both cat and dragon poised to fight, to decide the fate of the world.

"_Attack with White Lightning!_"

* * *

His entire body shook as he was finally brought back to the present. All he could register for the moment was he was on his knees, hands on the cold tile floor to keep himself from falling. It had all seemed to real, like he could have actually been standing in the middle of the duel. He wondered if he had, if he would have felt anything; the attacks sure seemed real.

Kaiba glanced back up at the tablet as Ishizu spoke up, "Now do you understand Kaiba? History is starting to repeat itself. It isn't coincidence that Yuugi is your greatest rival; you two have battled in the ancient past. It's destiny that you two dueled, and its destiny that you will battle again."

The CEO managed to get one knee under him to support his body from falling. His mind was now very nearly screaming at him to believe all that Ishizu was telling him, but like always, his heart was telling him another story.

Reaching over to his briefcase that he had probably dropped a while ago, he slung his hand through the handle to pick it up, "Thanks for the lecture. But I make my own destiny, and do what I want to do."

As he turned to walk back up the staircase, he failed to notice that Ishizu hadn't moved from the spot she had been standing, nor had she taken her eyes off of the ancient tablet, "Kaiba, what I thought you wanted were powerful cards, the Duel Monsters cards that surpass even Exodia." She turned halfway to face the brunette youth, "What if I told you they were right in front of your eyes?"

Kaiba turned back to face the Egyptian, "What?"

Suddenly, another voice erupted from the shadows that enveloped another part of the room, "You are wasting your time with him Ishizu. The deal shouldn't have to go through; he doesn't believe anything you are trying to tell him."

Ishizu turned to face the shadows as Kaiba smirked, thinking quietly it seemed the owner of the voice read his mind. The Egyptian woman still stood in the same place she currently was, and spoke in reply to the voice, her own vocals carrying themselves across the room, "And I thought that until I spoke to him about the deal, you had agreed to not interfere with my giving him the card."

The voice scoffed, "It's not like he would be able to control them. Only one person in history can."

Kaiba narrowed his eyes lightly, "Whoever you are, clearly, you haven't seen me play Duel Monsters. If this new card is just a card that Pegasus created, then surely it will be easy for me to hold in my deck." He turned back to face Ishizu, "So, you said its right in front of my eyes. Where?"

With one last glare at the shadows, Ishizu turned back to the tablet, "Take a look at the top. They were the most powerful and feared monsters of their time." One by one, she named them, Kaiba following her gaze as she looked at the corresponding pictures, "Obelisk the Tormentor, Slifer the Sky Dragon, the Winged Dragon of Ra."

Respectively, the images were depicting a giant humanoid figure, a slender dragon with a long neck and massive claws, and what appeared to be a dragon's head crossed with the wings of an eagle and the body of a lion.

"Control one, and an entire army will fall before you. Control all three, and the planet itself will quake beneath you."

Kaiba cocked an eyebrow, "And Pegasus turned them into cards."

"Yes."

"You lie. If he had them, then why didn't he use them against me in Duelist Kingdom?"

The voice from the shadows spoke up again, "Because even Pegasus feared their power, the power he thought he had sealed into the pieces of paper he created."

This time, without contempt, both Ishizu and Kaiba turned to face the shadows. A humanoid figure stepped out, but what surprised Kaiba was the fact it was indeed a young lady that owned the voice. She had tan skin similar to Ishizu's, her slender figure adorned in befitting clothing. It consisted of dark skinny jeans, black slippers like Ishizu's in style, a white t-shirt, and a black leather jacket. Several pieces of gold jewelry adorned her wrists and fingers, as well as a silver stud earing in her left ear. Her jet-black hair was pulled back into a ponytail, her bangs hanging lazily in front of her.

As soon as he moved his gaze more up toward her face, Kaiba had to restrain himself from gasping in shock. The girl also had a pair of yellow bangs that came together at the part in her hair, and hung down at the same point Yuugi's did, framing her elegant face. Her eyes seemed to burn right through Kaiba's own icy color, the girl's own the color of freshly drawn blood.

Kaiba knew he had seen those eyes before, but figured somehow, the light was playing a really good trick on him. He kept an eye on the girl as she walked over to join the two people, standing next to Ishizu.

With less anger than she had earlier, Ishizu turned to look at the young girl, "Seto Kaiba, this is my acquaintance Akela. Akela, this is Seto Kaiba."

The girl gave a curt nod, her eyes still narrowed much like the Duel King's were during a match, "Pleasure."

Kaiba didn't return the nod, "Same. If you don't mind though, and I'm sure you don't, do tell me more about how Pegasus even feared these cards. Ishizu said you knew more about the true history of Duel Monsters than anyone else. True or False?"

The girl looked at the tablet, "True, in many ways, some I cannot yet reveal."

Knowing she was not ready to talk that much yet, Ishizu decided to take over for her young friend, "Pegasus himself couldn't even fathom the strength of the magic contained in these Egyptian God cards. Not even he could control the very beings he had brought into the world as cards. They threatened to destroy him.

Kaiba kept his gaze locked on the two women, all the while thinking to himself. _Cards that made even Pegasus quake in his boots. If I can obtain these three legendary monsters, I'll be unstoppable in any duel, and Yuugi won't stand a chance. But how do I get them? I can't ask Pegasus, he's dropped off the face of the earth. They have to be somewhere._

Deciding a hunch was better than nothing, he finally talked again after condoling the last of his thoughts, "Ishizu, what did Pegasus do with the cards?"

Glancing briefly at the young woman next to her, the Egyptian woman replied, "He gave them to us for safe-keeping. Pegasus realized that if these cards got into the wrong hands, they could be used to destroy the world. He had me bury each one in a secret location, but they were unfortunately discovered. So I had to gather the remaining ones and hide them once again."

Kaiba lowered his head, "So someone already found them?"

"Yes."

"Tell me who."

Ishizu's eyes narrowed with a seriousness not even the CEO could pull off, "The Rare Hunters."

Kaiba's eyes widened in brief shock, "Rare Hunters?" He said the phrase with a bit of a flop, the unfamiliar name rolling off his tongue with disgust. He didn't even know about these people except for the name, but the fact that they stole the cards he so desperately wanted immediately caused him to bear a grudge.

Ishizu gave a solemn nod, "Akela knows more about them then I do. She had already faced them in many battles to get the cards back. Every time they dueled her, she won, but they never honored their pre-arranged agreement. Another Rare Hunter just snatched the card back and ran off before she could get it."

Kaiba looked at the other young woman, "Is that true?"

Akela nodded, "The Rare Hunters are ruthless. There are many top-knotch duelists all over the world, but not even they could beat the Rare Hunters elite forces. As an underground sect, they have easy access to the black market."

Kaiba narrowed his eyes, "Let me guess. They steal cards and sell them for money?"

"Correct. But like I said, they are an elite force. Naturally, like yourself and Pegasus, they keep the strongest cards for themselves to create more powerful decks than you could even imagine."

Kaiba took a defensive step forward, "How dare you? I am the president of a company and the top duelist in the world! How dare you compare me to these Hunters!"

Akela shrugged, "From what I heard, Yuugi Mutou beat you in a duel. Guess you can't really call yourself the best anymore."

Ishizu stepped between the two youths, "Please, this is not the time for fighting. Akela, you know why we have called him here. Let us just get on with the business talk so we may all leave in peace for the night."

The girl seemed to calm down a bit briefly as she turned to face the stone tablet, flicking an arm sarcastically, "The floor is all yours."

Ishizu narrowed her eyes lightly before turning to face Kaiba, "Rare Hunters don't come out very often into the open. As they operate from the dark, they cannot be found easily. Akela has managed to find several of their hideouts, but there are many of them, always changing location. The business deal I have called you here for is because I need your help in drawing out these card stealers."

Kaiba's shoulder rose slightly, his body tense, "Go on."

Ishizu continued from there with little change in her demeanor, "If you were to host a Duel Monsters tournament, then your reputation would surely attract the best duelists in the world. The collection of rare cards in one area would be like drawing bees to their hive with honey; the Rare Hunters would not be able to resist."

"I see. You're planning on using my tournament like a bear trap, getting all the Rare Hunters together and snagging them all at once. And when they come, they'll bring the god cards with them."

Ishizu took a couple steps forward until she was mere feet away from the CEO, "I have one more thing to tell you, but first, take this card."

Looking down at her outstretched hand, Kaiba saw what appeared to be a giant blue humanoid figure with about 10 star levels, the attirubte of light, and the card itself was also outlined in a navy blue.

Kaiba's eyes widened in surprise, "C-can it be? It's Obelisk the Tormentor." He briefly glanced up at the picture on the tablet before speaking again to the Egyptian curator, "But I thought the cards were stolen."

Ishizu nodded, "They were. However, I didn't say that all of them managed to elude Akela's grasp when she dueled the Rare Hunters. She managed to retrieve Obelisk before the hideout she was dueling in collapsed. She brought the card back to me, since she knew I was already planning to give it to you. You may borrow it for the tournament, but I expect it back."

Kaiba's frown turned into a smirk, "It's not every day a card this powerful is handed to me. What if I chose to keep it forever? What makes you think I can be trusted?"

Akela took a step forward, her eyes narrowed at the CEO, "She called you here for starters, didn't she? I'd say that's proof enough she trusts you, or else she would have gotten someone else to help."

Kaiba glanced over at Akela, "Why didn't she just enlist you then?"

Akela scoffed, "One, I don't a run a million dollar company. Two, let's just say I have certain 'limitations' on what I can do here in this city. Some very powerful friends of mine don't like it that I am here."

Ishizu looked at her with a look of sympathy, speaking to Kaiba, "That is the other matter of the deal I have called you here for. Like I said, Akela knows more about the Rare Hunters than even I do. If the Rare Hunters were to come to your tournament, there would be so many of them it would be hard to keep track. Akela could be your on-the-ground eliminator duelist."

Kaiba looked at the curator, "You're saying she would work for me?"

"In a manner she has agreed to, yes. She would be on the lookout for Rare Hunters and duel them. If she were to find an Egyptian God card, she would contact you to tell you where it is so you could retrieve it. And with as many Rare Hunters as there will be, it might not be a bad idea."

Kaiba cocked an eyebrow as he tucked Obelisk into his trench coat pocket, "And who says I need your help? Just because you work for me doesn't mean I would need you."

Ishizu looked back at the CEO, "Akela's deck is strong. She doesn't need the god cards in her deck to win. However, she despises the Rare Hunters, and the feeling is mutual. If you took her into your tournament as an eliminator, and exposed some familiar manner of her to the Rare Hunters, they would be even more eager to come to this city. She has beaten a great deal of them, and they want revenge for humiliation."

Kaiba took a moment to consider his options, "So, an on-the-ground duelist who works to obtain cards for me, in exchange for revenge?"

Akela spoke up, her voice powerful, not like what Kaiba originally expected, "I would still have free will of my own. If I ever felt anything you told me to do was wrong, I would be able to defy it without question. That is the only term I will draw in on my own. Other than that, I would be an eliminator under your control."

Kaiba looked at the girl, their eyes locked in a fight. Despite his own cold exterior, he could almost feel it melting away under the pressure of her blood-colored eyes. She was a war-hardened duelist, he could sense it, and that was what would be needed in a tournament of this magnitude. And with his own skills, he could sense the power of her deck he knew she had. It was strong, powerful, full of fire, a perfect mirror image of its owner.

There weren't many options to consider in retaliation to what Ishizu was offering. Near reluctantly, the CEO held out his hand, "Shake it and we've got a deal."

Equally reluctantly, Akela stuck her hand out, grasping the CEO's. A momentary shake occurred before he turned to leave. "Be at Kaiba Corp tomorrow at 7. I will need your help in planning the tournament. As of now, you work for me."

Not bothering to check if she nodded, he began walking up the steps, "I'll set up this tournament, but not because of any of your hocus pocus mind tricks Ishizu."

"I thank you."

"I want to reclaim my title as the number one duelist in the world."

As the two women watched the CEO walk off, Ishizu let her gaze falter briefly. _You will return the card to me Kaiba. I have forseen it…_

* * *

Akela scoffed as Kaiba exited the room, leaving the duo alone, "Cheerful, isn't he?"

Ishizu glanced over at her, "You may not enjoy this deal, but don't forget it was your idea. I don't even understand how that mind of yours works, but however it does, it is strange to me."

Akela shrugged, "What do you expect? I don't understand how yours works either. My mind is basically a past treasure. Even you know I shouldn't be here in this time."

Ishizu looked at the tablet, at the carving in the middle between the Pharaoh and the Sorcerer, "It was never your fault though, was it? You did it to protect someone you loved, and the curse is now bonded to you. Not even the gods can take it back."

Akela grimaced, "They just want me as a puppet to do their work on earth. I constantly have to maintain my form here instead of the dominion where it is easier. And when I go back there, I have my own problems to attend to. My life was never easy. I even find myself wondering how I will be able to protect him this time."

Ishizu stepped forward to look into Akela's eyes, the orbs now the color of the ocean in the morning sun, instead of blood-red, "You did it once before, didn't you? You can easily do it again."

Akela looked down at the floor, "Back then he had the full extent of the power he possessed. But when the spell was completed, they were sealed away, and now he can't get to them. If that Rare Hunter leader truly does come along to try and fight him, he knows what he will get in return."

The young girl clenched a fist in rage, her teeth gritted together. Ishizu reached out, gently taking hold of the young girl's hand, "You cannot let your anger get the better of you. All we need is to follow through with the deal, get the cards back, and defeat the shadows that have formed inside someone I care for. If we can do that, then all this will be worth it."

Akela sighed as she turned toward the wall, "I hope you're right." The girl then walked forward toward the shadows she had come out of, and disappeared under the veil she depended on for protection.

As Ishizu watched her go, she couldn't help but glance sadly in that same direction. _I hope so too…_

* * *

The CEO smirked as he sat comfortably in the limo, his driver heading down the road that led to his company. Normally, he wouldn't even consider being in this happy of a mood, but considering the card he had just gotten, he couldn't contain it.

"One down, two to go…" And then he was laughing, the sound mixed of slight evil and pride.

As the car continued to glide gently down the road, he looked ahead at his company, already formulating the events ahead of him. So focused on the tournament plans, he failed to notice a presence watching him from the shadows…

* * *

And that's the end of the first chapter! I feel proud of myself, although it did take me two days to finish writing it. I know a lot of the stuff here was still taken from the script in the show, but it was how I wanted to start it off. I figured the easiest way to introduce the OC with what I had planned for her role was by starting with Kaiba's meeting with Ishizu. So now, as you've read it, Akela officially works for him, although she's not happy about it (the feeling is probably mutual).

For any of you who might be wondering about Akela's eyes, yes, their color did change. Why? Well, that will be revealed later (partly because I'm still thinking of a way to explain why).

Well, anyways, that was the first chapter, and I hope you enjoyed it. Please R&R!

Expect the next update within two days...


	2. Chapter 2

Wow, already it's the second chapter. Okay, so as a recap for the last one, Kaiba met up with Ishizu, the curator of the Domino Museum Egyptian exhibit. In addition to gaining a powerful card as the newest addition to his deck, he also found out more about the past than he bargained for. And supposedly, Ishizu says that this girl she knows could be a valuable asset to Kaiba's team. Though, neither Kaiba nor Akela seem happy about the agreement. But Ishizu did make a valid point; the deal was her idea. So now Kaiba wants to reclaim his title, and Akela wants to settle a score with the Rare Hunters? Where will the Duel Monsters tournament take them from here?

Disclaimer: Akela is my own creation, but Yu-Gi-Oh belongs to Takahashi and 4Kids (or whoever else is broadcasting their program).

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Akela took in a deep breath as she faced the KaibaCorp tower. With what she had been in over the course of her life, her nerves really shouldn't be bothering her right now. Then again, she really didn't belong here, in this city, in this time no matter. But, the curse was her bond; as long as it was latched onto her soul, there was no way she could ever return to where she belonged.

A light evening breeze in the air ruffled her bangs, and as she lifted a hand to brush her black hair behind her ears, her slender fingers brushed against the two blonde bangs she possessed. Every time she looked at them in a mirror, all her childhood memories flashed back to her. But if she ever revealed them to anyone, they would definitely not believe her.

Then again, she could tell him, considering that he was bound to participate in the tournament to face the shadows like he did before. But her instinct was practically screaming at her not to. Besides, with his current state of mind, she knew she couldn't press all this information on him at once.

She steeled herself for what lay ahead in the following days to come. There was the tournament, duelists to beat, Rare Hunters to seek revenge on, a stubborn CEO to work for. She shivered at the very thought; the idea may have been hers, but if it had not been for her 'powerful friends', she would not have even gone through with it.

She glanced up at the sky, placing her hands in her jacket pockets; she really wished she could curse them using the very magic they forced her to keep locked inside her. Her soul was powerful enough to contain the darkness that many feared, the only one to keep its true power in. But even then, she was still considered a puppet; a dog that bowed at the feet of the gods that used her.

But here in the tournament, she would finally be able to have free reign over her magic, the standards at least. Even then, it would be enough to take back the power that should not be in the hands of the Rare Hunter's leader. If he was here right now, she couldn't keep track of how many ways she could torture him for what he did…

She turned her head back toward the building, hearing the glass doors out front slide open. A man in a black tuxedo with gray hair and black sunglasses approached the young girl, hands tucked behind his back.

"Ms. Akela, Mr. Kaiba is expecting you. He is on Floor Level B3. I suggest you hurry."

Akela simply nodded once to Kaiba's servant before walking inside, taking note of said servant following behind her. Looking around at the technology surrounding her, she never wished more than that she could return home, even if it was in a place that the 'unbelievable' was quite real.

* * *

"All hands stand by for the test of the new Duel Disk system."

Seto Kaiba glanced down at the device he held in his hand. He mentally smiled; this creation had been crafted from the ideas of his own mind, his most intricate design yet. It may have felt a bit heavy, but considering the entire thing was crafted from metal, he decided not to complain.

He let his eyes wander up to the observation deck where several of his employees and little brother were at work preparing the holographic system. His little brother… he felt the card pendant grow heavy around his neck. The memories came back to him way too often nowadays.

He shook his head once; he could not focus on that now. If he wanted this tournament to go off without a hitch or glitch, then he had to perfect his new system. He grimaced lightly at his employee's next words, "As you've requested Mr. Kaiba, we've removed all safety locks in the system."

"You're crazy Seto. If the safeguards are turned off in this duel, the monsters could really hurt you."

"Well, him being crazy is not exactly a new tidbit." Mokuba glanced over his shoulder at the figure who had approached behind him. Seeing the familiar blood-colored eyes and blonde bangs, he chose to ignore what she had just said.

Kaiba smirked, "Your stealthy approaches never cease to impress me Akela. Even then, I never said I wasn't crazy either."

Akela cocked an eyebrow, tucking her hands into her jean pockets, "Wow, the great Duel Monsters champ Seto Kaiba actually admits he's crazy. I think I should schedule you a therapist treatment later, though it probably wouldn't help."

Kaiba sighed as he placed the new disk on his left wrist as another one of his employees spoke, "We're ready to begin the test when you are sir."

"Then let's." Kaiba tapped a button that locked the wrist guard onto his arm to prevent the disk from falling, and held his arm out. The two duel card blades on the sides of the disk came into the center, joining together, to form the five slots needed to play the game cards. Both blades then swung back to the left, before going in towards the center of the disk. Several of the lights on the disk lit up, letting Kaiba know the holographic technology was ready and rearing to go.

_I invented this new duel disk system, and I'll be the one to test it. I have to make sure the KaibaCorp tracking system is working perfectly. It traces all KaibaCorp duel disks, allowing me to keep an eye on every duel in the tournament. I'll need to, if I want to find those other two god cards. And this duel is the perfect way for me to test my own. If I'm going to use it to beat Yuugi, and reclaim my number one title as the greatest duelist in the world, I need to make sure its as powerful as Ishizu claims. She may have bored me with her hocus pocus nonsense about the past, but she was right about one thing. Yuugi and I will face each other again, and this time, with a deck of rare cards, I will be victorious…_

The employees began flipping several switches as a finalization to make sure all the systems were ready for the duel.

"The duel disk is online. Engaging duel robot."

Kaiba's eyes narrowed as a huge electronic system lowered itself from the roof, equipped with the ten slots necessary to play the ten cards allowed on the field in Duel Monsters, excluding field spells.

Another employee spoke up, "We've had the duel robot upgraded with your latest tournament rules sir. I'm setting skill level at max. We're ready to begin on your command."

Mokuba leaned forward to look down at his older brother, "Seto, are you sure you want to go through with this?"

Akela leaned in toward the younger Kaiba, "I heard from an employee he's got the medics on standby. The chances of Kaiba getting hurt are pretty high, if the duel robot manages to get a good hit at his life points. The robot has the same deck Kaiba used in Duelist Kingdom. Let's just hope with the new rules he can win without getting any broken bones."

Mokuba gasped, "Even the Blue Eyes? I sure hope Seto knows what he's doing, because if he gets hit by one, he's in major trouble."

Akela glanced back up to watch the duel. _Not as much as you would think. If only you knew the truth Mokuba. Only Seto does out of all that will be involved in this tournament. However, if he refuses to believe, then the dragon will cease to protect him, even in a practice duel…_

Everyone watched as Seto reached for his deck, placing it into the holder on the disk. His life point meter rose until it hit 4000, the duel robots' doing the same. A sudden thought came back to Kaiba as he prepared himself for the practice duel.

_Be careful when using Obelisk Kaiba, for he may be too powerful for you to control. If you can, when you do use him, try and have Akela around. She will be able to restrain his power, but even I can't explain how she does it. Just be careful…_

_Be careful huh? Well, I won't know how strong Obelisk is until I see it with my own eyes…_ Even so, he briefly turned his head, looking up at the observation deck. He could see Akela standing next to Mokuba, the two of them concentrated on the control board to make sure the duel system ran smoothly.

The girl's eyes darted upward, crystal ice locking with red fire. Kaiba couldn't help but pray that if Ishizu was right, then Akela had some powerful magic at her disposal. The monsters in this duel would be practically real, and even facing a weak monster, he knew he could get hurt. But he knew it would be the only way to test out the true power of his god. Holographic technology would not be able to contain it.

Akela noticed the seriousness in Kaiba's eyes, knowing full well what monsters he planned to test Obelisk against; the ones for whom he would wait to be on the field. _It may not be the best plan Kaiba. The dragon might think you are betraying it. Watch out whom you play Obelisk against. You may regret it…_

Kaiba allowed the faintest of smirks to appear on his face, "Let's go!"

Akela reached over the typed a few code words on the keyboard, flipping on the main duel computer. The duel robot's light began glowing as the program turned on.

"Launching hologram projectors." In time with his employee's words, Kaiba held out his arm, two semi-circle metal object flying off the sides of the disk. They each flew to one side of the arena, moving around a bit before they began glowing.

"It's time to duel." Kaiba pulled his arm in toward his chest to make sure the duel disk was balanced on his arm as the duel computer conducted the first move.

"_Drawing card. Accessing duel data computer for optimum strategy…_

* * *

As Akela watched the duel commence, she began to let her mind wander over these past 48 hours. As said, she had met Kaiba at 7 the morning prior, and the meeting had been quite productive. Helping come up with the new rules about monster control and how duelists could qualify for the finals was a bit challenging when working with Kaiba. But then again, she had an easy inside on locating the Rare Hunters without stretching her magic, and an employer who trusted her every move.

She had to admit, even she thought she was good.

Feeling something vibrating in her pocket, she reached in and pulled out the cell phone Isizhu had leant her. Akela would have preferred using her magic to talk, but Ishizu could never figure out how to reply back. They both figured in this world anyway, a phone was easier, and more practical.

Taking a few steps away from the control panels so she would not risk damaging anything, she flipped the phone open, placing it to her ear. The cold sensation of the metal against skin caused a light shiver to run down her body as she listened to Ishizu's voice over through the speaker end.

"Akela, you there?"

"It's me Ishizu. I'm the only one who even answers this phone. You told me to keep it on me at all times when I am in this world, remember?"

Ishizu let out a sigh before speaking again, "Please Akela, you've reached your sarcasm limit for the day. This is important."

Akela perked up at hearing that, "You are indeed planning on meeting with him tonight? Kaiba is due to broadcast the announcement about the tournament in about an hour."

"Indeed I am planning on that. I will reveal little information about you, but enough for him to know you are a friend. I have forseen how the two of you will meet in the course of the tournament. He will be a bit surprised though."

Akela scoffed, "Considering my level of magic, I wouldn't doubt it."

"The gods have forbidden you though from doing little more than dueling, right? You aren't allowed to use your magic to harm mortal souls, unlike him. He has a good reason to."

"So do I, if they possess tremendous evil in their hearts. And in our case, with the Rare Hunters on the loose, then they'll let it slide during the tournament. As long as I do show some anger restraint, I can use the full extent of my powers."

Ishizu gasped, "Even the other form?"

"Yes. But even I need to be careful with it. On Earth, its not easy for me to maintain my form, especially the other form, since it relies so heavily on magic and shadows."

"Very well than. I must attend to some important business concerning the exhibit before it can be displayed. I will speak to you later."

"Understood. Goodbye." As Akela hung up the phone, she just had enough time to hear the duel bot say something she would never believe.

"_Activating magic card, Polymerization. Fusing three Blue-Eyes White Dragons into Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon."_

Akela rapidly turned around, seeing a hulking blue tri-headed dragon glaring down at the master she thought it once obeyed. Looking down at Mokuba, she narrowed her eyes, "Apparently my phone call didn't take too long."

Mokuba turned around to face the young girl, "We need to get the safety controls back on! That monster could really hurt Seto!"

"_Analyzing new duel tournament rules. Fusion monster cannot attack on the same turn it was created. Must end turn._"

Looking back at the blue dragon, a memory flashed back to her. Where she came from, she had faced the wrath of this beast more than once when another beast made it angry. She had been able to contain its power before, but now that it was battling against another person, she wouldn't be able to use her magic like normal.

She could see the rage in the eyes of the dragon as it glared down at Kaiba, the CEO taking a step back. And with Kaiba's monsters cowering in defense position, she actually began to believe he was in trouble.

Kaiba looked up at the dragon with contempt, letting a smirk appear on his face, "Just great."

"Seto!"

Kaiba's employees looked down at the duel in shock, "He's doomed. None of his monsters come even close to the dragon's attack strength. If the attack succeeds, the damage from it will be catastrophic."

"WHAT?!" Even Akela looked over at the employee Mokuba had his eyes narrowed at.

"With the safety off, the dragon's Neutron Blast will cause serious injuries to Mr Kaiba."

Mokuba and Akela looked down at the charts that were analyzing the dragon's energy levels. Though she wasn't very proficient with all this technology, even Akela figured that the level readings were bad.

Mokuba put his hand on the earpiece that allowed him to project his voice into the dueling arena, "GET OUT OF THERE SETO! SHUT DOWN THE DUEL! SETO!"

Seto merely turned back to face the dragon he was so familiar with, the beast he once considered was only under his control. A shiver ran down his spine; since when did that happen? He could not remember the last time that… that… had he ever felt this emotion before? He looked down at his hand; pure surprise was written all over his face, seeing his slim fingers trembling.

_So, this is what its like to face fear. This must be how Yuugi felt when he stared into the eyes of my Ultimate Dragon in Duelist Kingdom. He may have been close to bringing my Ultimate Dragon to its knees, but in the end, not even he could defeat it. And if I'm to reclaim my title as the number one duelist in the world, I must beat the monster that even Yuugi couldn't. Prepare to face the end…_

Kaiba placed two fingers on his deck, prepared to draw the card, "Now its time for my final test! Time to see what an Egyptian god can really do! Obelisk the Tormentor, I summon you by sacrificing three of my monsters!"

As soon as Kaiba placed the card onto his duel disk, a bright light erupted from the card, enveloping the arena. Everyone in the duel observation deck shielded their eyes with an arm, Akela just looking down at the arena, waiting for the monster to appear.

As the light vanished, a giant blue humanoid figure appeared on the field, with glowing red eyes, massive arms and legs, two large blue wings on its back, blue spikes covering its shoulders, and pearly white fangs. A small blue gem adorned its forehead, immediately catching Akela's eye. She remembered where she had seen that gem too often, looking down at one of the bracelets she possessed. On the bracelet was a gem fashioned of what appeared to be the same color as the one that adorned Obelisks' forehead.

Electric strikes began hitting the arena with the force of lightning in a storm, as Mokuba stared at the monster with wide eyes, "No way! That Egyptian god card is humongous!" Sure enough, when Obelisk stood up to full height, he nearly touched the roof, and could have broken it if he even so much stretched his wings.

"Obelisk, let's show this duel bot the true power you possess!" As the Egyptian god growled at hearing its current master's orders, it risked a glance over at Akela, turning its massive head to look at the young Egyptian girl.

Akela noticed the beast looking her way, and concentrated her magic, stretching it out to pry at Obelisk's mind. Though she felt the internal defenses of the beast fighting against her advance, she had to at least get the message through. And even though her magic was powerful, using too much of it at once while she was on Earth could be consequential. She depended on her magic to maintain a form in this world, and if she let it fade away, she knew it could be days for her magic to recover fully.

_Restrain yourself Obelisk. This may be practice, but I know you. If need be, I'll assist in controlling the strength…_ The god gave a solemn nod at the young girl, a silent understanding passing between them as it turned back to Kaiba to hear his next orders.

"Now I offer you my two remaining monsters! Feed on their energy to reach the strength of a thousand Egyptian Gods!" Obelisk reached down and took hold of the two monsters, pooling their magic into the gem on his forehead. Akela felt the bracelet around her wrist burn in response as she struggled to make sure Obelisk's power didn't get too out of control. She knew if that happened, Kaiba might as well kiss his company building goodbye now.

"I've never seen anything like this! Obelisk's attack strength is rising off the charts!" The employees and Mokuba lifted their arms to shield themselves as all the control panels around them began exploding, Kaiba and Akela hardly even fazed by what was going on.

Even Mokuba seemed perplexed at the girl's stoic demeanor. _Why isn't she reacting to all this? I know she's had experience facing the god's before, but you would think she would say something about all these machines exploding…_

Kaiba lifted a hand, glaring at the three-headed dragon, "Obelisk, destroy the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon! Show it why you're known as the Tormentor." The Egyptian God pulled a fist back, a yellow pool of energy flowing around it. "Attack with Fist of Fate!"

Quick as a flash, Obelisk's fist flew toward the Blue Eyes with strength equal to that of a meteorite impacting Earth. Everyone watched as the god punched the dragon in the stomach, the latter exploding in a cloud of dust. Energy blasted around the duel arena, causing the duel robot to explode in a cloud of fire.

"Shut down the main power source now!"

Mokuba's eyes widened, "Obelisk the Tormentor… he defeated the Ultimate Dragon with just one punch…"

Kaiba, knowing the duel was long over, removed the card from the disk, holding it up to look at the monster on it, "Incredible. If this is the power of one Egyptian God card, with all three, I will be unstoppable. I will defeat Yuugi and reclaim my title as the number one duelist."

Akela looked down at her wristwatch, noticing that the time had disappeared quicker than she had imagined. She looked down at Mokuba, still in shock from the result of the duel, "That took longer than expected. Shall we get ready for the tournament broadcast tonight?"

Mokuba nodded, still not taking his eyes off his brother, "The guys are waiting for the fitting of your customized duel disk and cloak. Seto asked me to tell you to report to the broadcast room at 10 minutes to 10."

Akela nodded, "I'll see you guys there then." She quietly turned around and strode from the room, reaching down and zipping up her jacket. As she walked along the halls, she couldn't help but let her mind wander.

_Kaiba, you really don't know the true power of that card. As soon as all three gods are brought together, chaos will erupt… I have forseen it…_

* * *

The three men finally took a break from watching Akela through the portal that allowed them to see Earth from where they were. In accordance to Akela, like her, they were just trapped spirits, with one purpose: protecting the Earth from shadows. They had been chosen millennia ago, but even then they were trapped. Their spirits had drifted from their bodies with the help of the magician friend, but it was not the same.

The tallest of the men gazed at his companions, "_Do you really think she will be able to help him defeat the shadows?_"

The shortest glared back, "_We can only hope. If not, then the guardian will be lost forever…_"

The other men scoffed at their friend, "_We know you enjoy having her around. But considering you look and sound like her family member, wouldn't it be a bit creepy?_"

The shortest man shrugged, "_Some call it reincarnation, I just call it coincidence. Even Crow Goblin has done research; in no way are the two of us related._"

"_So you stand a chance with her?_"

"_Only if she is able to defeat the shadows. If not, our home will be lost to the darkness, as will the entire human world…_"

The middle man crossed his arms over his chest, "_So you really think she will be able to combine her magic with that of his, and they can defeat the darkness that has possessed the Tomb Keeper?_"

The other two men glanced at one another before looking back at the portal, speaking in union, "_We can only hope…_"

* * *

The fitting had taken longer than she expected. Then again, the stylist Kaiba had hired wanted to try on different cloak combinations in order to fit the color scheme of her customized duel disk. Okay, the piece of metal might not have been silver, red, and blue, but seriously, did such a fuss need be made?

She shook her head; there was no use in drawling on the thought as much as she was. She looked over at the CEO standing next to her, then the camera in front of him. What made her a bit antsy though was that Kaiba say for this broadcast, she would not be wearing the disguise that she had been told she would use. But without a cover to hide behind, she felt exposed, vulnerable… it was so unlike her.

She depended on the shadows; they were her family. They kept her hidden from prying eyes, her secrets locked away where they could never be found. But without anything to hide behind, she felt like a scared little child. She remembered that this is what it felt like the day she stood in front of the huge crowd of people, people who were chanting her name…

She shook her head… letting her mind wander was not the brightest idea at the moment. She stood off to the side, seeing the cameraman get to his station behind the broadcasting system. Even though this was only a pre-recording, it made her quite a bit nervous. She took in a deep breath; Phase 1, Gain Trust, was complete. Now, onto Phase 2…

* * *

The trio looked up at the monitor screen displayed on the side of a building across from the local park. If you had been a tourist, or didn't watch Duel Monsters competitions, you would never have known their names. However, on close observation, they were quite familiar.

The two females of the group stood taller than the sole male. Both girls had pale skin, and collared jackets over their shirts. One female had cerulean blue eyes and shoulder length brown hair, the other with medium length blond hair and dark ruby red eyes. The brown-haired female had on a pink jacket with a yellow tang top, a dark pink skirt, dark pink shoes, and black thigh-high stockings. The other female had a purple jacket, a white shirt, purple high-heeled boots, and cell phone patch latched around her thigh.

The sole male of the group was wearing a dark outfit composed entirely of leather, in addition to several chains adorning his wrists. He wore two studded belts around his waist purple ankle boots, and a black neck choker. He adorned a large golden upside-down pyramid around his neck, held steady by a silver chain. He had pale skin like both females, and dark blood-red eyes. His hair spiked upward like a star, trimmed in dark crimson with yellow bangs covering his forehead, with several more spiking up into his hair.

"And there he is now," the blonde female said aloud as the infamous Seto Kaiba's face appeared on the monitor screen.

"Kaiba…" the male said aloud, his eyes narrowing in anger.

"_Greetings duelists. Welcome to the city of Domino. But more importantly, welcome to my tournament."_

The blonde female crossed her arms, "I don't know what's bigger, his ego or his melon on the big screen."

The male flicked his gaze back up toward the screen, momentarily distracted by something he thought he heard, "Let's just hear what he has to say. It could be important."

The brunette female sighed lightly, "I highly doubt anything Kaiba has to say is important. Rather, just more gloating."

The blonde female smirked, "You could be correct about that one Tea. Even then, if it is true that Kaiba is hosting this tournament, we might as well hear him out."

The male nodded, looking at Tea, "Mai's right. Duelist Kingdom has new rules added to the game, and we weren't aware. I nearly lost my duel with Weevil then. In order to win this tournament, we can't afford to miss any information or cause any screw-ups."

Tea looked back up at the TV, the other two doing the same, "I sure hope you're right Yuugi."

"_I see that you all received your private invite to KaibaCorp's new dueling tournament, and that you had enough brains to show up here tonight._"

Yuugi, Mai, and Tea looked around as the duelists surrounding them began letting loose words and taunts at the brown-haired CEO, obviously all in anger of what he had just said to them.

"_Being that you are all experience duelists, I have added new rules to this tournament specifically for experts. For example…_" The CEO stopped speaking momentarily as the camera flashed down toward his wrist, on which a strange silver, blue, and red metal device was mounted, "_You will duel using these new and improved special Duel Disks._"

Yuugi, Mai, and Tea even stared in awe at the duel system as they listened to the whispers around them.

"Check that out."

"KaibaCorp's got the coolest dueling stuff in the world."

"_Another rule that I have added to the tournament is that before each duel, each player must ante up their rarest card, and the loser of the duel must give up their card, with the winner receiving it._"

Yuugi's eyes narrowed slightly, speaking more to himself than to others in a tone full of anger and irritation, "Forfeit my Dark Magician?!"

Mai crossed her arms, her gaze still locked on the TV screen, "That means losing one duel could ruin my entire deck."

The camera tilted up, showing Kaiba's face again as well as the active Duel Disk, "_My tournament will make Pegasus and Duelist Kingdom look like a joke._"

The audience began shouting praise to the CEO, hardly noticing the tremor of the wind. Yuugi, Mai, and Tea noticed though, and turned toward the source of where it was coming from. All the other bystanders followed suit, looking up toward the sky. A large light tan helicopter with a blue stripe extending from the front to the open doors was hovering above the town square, a certain CEO standing atop the landing skids.

Yami narrowed his eyes, hunching over slightly as his gaze met that of the CEO, "Kaiba."

* * *

There he was; his arch rival in the game of Duel Monsters. He couldn't believe that Ishizu and Akela had been spot on, predicting that he would indeed show up. Of course, Kaiba knew he couldn't resist a challenge, much less a tournament of this magnitude.

He narrowed his eyes as he glanced down at the people on the streets of Domino, his icy blue eyes locking onto that of blood red, eyes he thought too familiar of another person he knew. _I knew you would come Yuugi. We'll see which one of us is the number one duelist._

Kaiba opened his mouth to speak, his voice protruding with a tone of power that would make a soccer announcer jealous, "As you've all seen the broadcast, you now know of the rules. I will alert you that there are still more twists to come, including a trick that will give you instant access to the finals."

He lifted one hand, his finger pointing to the sky, ignoring his billowing trench coat, "So, don't forget to register, because exactly one week from today, my Battle City tournament begins!"

As the helicopter began to hover a bit higher, signaling it was getting ready to leave, Yuugi narrowed his eyes, hunching his shoulders in tension, "You're on Kaiba!"

* * *

"Battle City, eh?" The unfamiliar voice resonated in the shadowy room, sounding briefly like a snake crawling quietly, menacingly, across the ground.

A man dressed in a black trench coat with a purple Eye of Horus atop the hood and a gold chain holding it in place nodded, "That is correct master." The man faltered briefly, letting his gaze wander around the room. Even though he was completely loyal to his master, this room still freaked him out quite a bit. The walls appeared to be made of pure shadow, blue candle flames flickering around them to provide the room with suitable lighting so they could see one another.

He restrained the urge to shake his head, knowing full well what would happen should he show any disrespect for his master, "The world's most elite duelists will be competing."

The master stood up, his trench coat falling near his ankles. He held up one hand, the blue flames flickering against a golden staff with two horns, one per side, and an Eye of Horus in the middle of it. He let out a quiet laugh, "How convenient for us that so many of our targets will be gathered in one place." He lifted his head, lilac eyes gazing over his servants, "Now my Rare Hunters, go forth to the city of Domino at once!"

Each Rare Hunter lifted one arm, crossing it over their chest, showing their pledge to their master, "Yes sir, at once."

The master lifted his arm bearing the golden rod higher, "Its time to begin the hunt."

* * *

"He was seriously flying above Domino in a helicopter?" Ishizu gently place her cup of tea down on the café shop table, her serious gaze locked on the Egyptian teenager.

Akela nodded, "More like hanging outside it on the landing skid, but you get the idea?" The youth took a sip of her drink, trying to be at ease, but couldn't help an uneasy feeling in her gut. Her eyes flicked around constantly, observing every sight they could drink in.

Ishizu noticed her young friend's tense behavior, and spoke in a near whisper, "Your powers are acting up? Is that why you are acting so tense?"

Akela put her drink down, looking at her clenched fist, "More like my sixth sense. I just sense trouble all around these days. I had to learn that instinct growing up, mastering my powers. It's just stuck with me all these years. I can't really help it."

Ishizu nodded, "You actually blend in right now. Everyone is getting really tense about the upcoming tournament, myself included."

Akela looked up, "Is your deck truly ready? Though I don't want to brag, it didn't stand a chance against mine, and my cards don't even come from this era."

Ishizu sighed, "I was full aware of your futuristic deck well before you dueled me. However, I was not expecting you to handle it with such expert skill."

"I don't get that a lot, so I'll take it as a compliment."

"You should."

Akela allowed the smallest of smiles to appear on her face before lifting her arm, looking at the watch on her wrist, "I need to go now. Have to run an errand at the nearby shop."

Ishizu nodded, "May I ask what for?"

"Something that has to do with a special order Kaiba put in. Apparently it was mistakenly taken to the shop, and Kaiba knew I was going to be in town today. Texted me to ask for me to pick it up."

"Very well then. I'll let you go complete your errand. Are you due for a practice match today?"

Akela smirked, "Funny you mentioned that, one of the guardians challenged me to a spirit duel. I managed to win, but even I knew he was cheating."

Ishizu looked shocked, "I thought guardians never cheated."

Akela shrugged as the two of them stood up, "They don't. It was just practice though, and it was all for fun. I let him get away with it."

Ishizu placed a hand on her hip as Akela walked away, heading for the shop on the south edge of town, "You didn't really, did you?"

Akela smirked as she turned her head slightly, gazing at Ishizu from the corner of her eye, "Nope." With that, she quietly walked off, offering no more explanation to Ishizu about what had been going on during these past few days.

The Egyptian curator sighed once as she began walking back toward the museum. _I sure hope you know what you're getting into Akela_…

* * *

The youth struggled to keep her head low. Kaiba had told her to try and look as normal as possible, but even with her calm exterior, her inside wasn't as strong. She never liked being around crowds much. Hell, it was a main reason why she often avoided the parties her father threw. She didn't care where she had hidden, as long as it was away from the crowd. Then again, hiding in the stable that one time wasn't the smartest thing she had ever done…

She shivered lightly at the thought. The memory seemed so fresh, but she knew it was far longer than that. She let her gaze wander around, looking for the building Kaiba had told her about. Spotting it nearby, she calmly walked inside, the collar of her jacket pulled up to cover the bottom half of her face. It didn't do much to hide her true identity, but it did well enough that she did not feel exposed.

She placed one hand on the door handle, pulling it open before letting her feet guide her inside. The shop had a calm atmosphere, with lightly painted yellow walls and shelves stacked full of cards and trinkets. Her eyes drifted toward the desk stationed near the back, and the man standing behind it. He wore a simple blue shirt, a yellow bandana covering his head, and glasses that masked his eyes.

She grimaced as she walked toward him, her yellow bangs falling in front of her eyes; in a way, she was jealous. Her eyes couldn't be masked the way she wished they could, even though in a way, she could change them. But hiding them behind glasses was something she wished she could do. Then, she remembered she had seen a bystander earlier wearing what Ishizu had called 'sunglasses'. She would invest in a pair of those later; right now, she had business to take care of.

The man turned to greet the teenager as she approached him, "Good morning. And how can I be of assistance to you today young lady?"

Akela tilted her head down slightly, lifting one hand to brush her loose bangs behind her ears, "I'm here to pick up a misplaced order for Mr. Seto Kaiba."

The man snapped his fingers, "Ah yes, the package arrived this morning. I'll get it from the back." As he walked away, Akela allowed her gaze to float around the room.

She could feel the spirits of the cards around her. Her deck was pulsating heavily with a vibe she thought she would never feel in a place like this. There was danger present here, but where could it be? She didn't sense any of the Hunters here, or him for that matter. So if they weren't here, then who could be?

She shook the thought from her mind as the man re-approached her, holding up the small brown package, "Here you go. I apologize for any trouble or mix-up."

Akela blinked, letting her eyes stay shut for a moment, "There was no trouble, it is quite all right. Mr. Kaiba thanks you for your understanding."

The man nodded, a smile appearing, "You're very welcome. Have a good day young lady."

"You as well." As Akela turned to walk back to KaibaCorp, she couldn't help but feel uneasy. That smile had seemed forced, almost… fake…

Right before she went to open the door, she hesitated; okay, now the feeling had crept down to her stomach, and that made it worse. She needed to investigate. Maybe if she hung around the shop for a tiny bit, just observed the man… the card spirits could tell her about his intentions, and she needed the help right now. Her powers had been acting up as of late, and if she wanted information, she needed to depend on the monsters.

Her hand faltered from its grip on the door handle, falling back to her side. She turned her head, seeing the man busy wiping off the counter with a glass cleaner. She contemplated following through with her motive, but nothing seemed off about this man. So, what had made the card spirits feel so uneasy?

Her thoughts were racing inside her head like the Indy 500, causing a brief migraine to appear. Her card spirits may be acting up, but a.) she had to get this package to Kaiba, and b.) she had to get a handle on her powers before they hurt someone.

Having realized she had taken a step away from the door, she began to walk back, and only had a moment of realization before it opened on its own, and she was shoved to the ground by two teenage boys. Landing with an uncomfortable thump on her back, she moved her hands under her, using them to lift her upper body off the ground. She rubbed the back of her head, knowing she had hit it on something, but not hard; the pain would pass. She heard mangled voices before noticing a hand extended down to her to help her up off the floor.

She let her gaze drift up, holding in her shock at seeing who it was. The young girl had on mid-calf tan boots, a light red skirt two blue bracelets adorning her wrists, a purple shirt, and a blue jean jacket. Her cropped brown hair fell to just above her shoulders, her eyes reminding the Egyptian youth too much of a certain brunette CEO.

Her gaze faltered to the outstretched hand, the brunette girl speaking with a soft voice, "Are you all right? Here, lemme help you up."

Akela reached one hand up, gripping the brunette's in a soft yet firm form. She allowed the girl to lift her up off the floor, noticing how she was apologizing as she brushed her black jacket off.

"I sincerely apologize for them. They never watch where they are going."

"Not true Tea! We just didn't see dat girl till' we opened da door!"

The brunette girl, apparently called Tea, marched over to the boys who had apparently knocked Akela over. One boy had disheveled blonde hair, slightly dark skin, fiery brown eyes, a blue jacket, a light blue t-shirt, dark blue jean pants, black sneakers, and a silver dog tag necklace. The other male had brown hair spiked upward to a point above his forehead, brown eyes, a dark turquoise jacket, a sky blue buttoned shirt, black pants, and black semi-dress shoes.

Both of them were now currently on their feet, glaring at the brunette female, "If anyting' she should be watching where she's standin'! If she wasn't standin' by da door when we ran in, we wouldn't have run over her!"

Tea narrowed her eyes, "The fact remains you still ran her over Joey, so why don't you apologize before I make you and Tristan say so?"

The male with brown hair placed his hands on his hips, "And what're you gonna do?"

Tea closed her eyes, her expression shifting from annoyed to pure frustration as she reached out, grabbing hold of the blonde's left ear and the brunette's right, yanking on them. She turned the boys around to face Akela, both boys with desperate expression on their faces.

"We're sorry we ran over ya!" "We won't do it again!" "Promise!" "Let us go Tea!" Each boy yelled in turn before howling in pain as Tea gave their ears another hard tug before letting them go. Both boys placed a hand on their chest, glaring daggers at the brunette female, before a tap on her shoulder caused Akela to turn around.

She had to restrain herself from gasping as she took in the person next to her. The boy had a head full of tri-colored spiky hair, blonde bangs similar to hers covering his forehead. He had on what appeared to be a school uniform, consisting of a navy blue jacket, a black shirt, and navy blue pants. He had on a black neck choker, dark navy purple boots with silver studs, and purple amethyst eyes that glittered like the jewel in the faint shop light.

Akela faltered as she looked at the pendant he adorned around his neck. It was the shape of an upside-down pyramid, lines carved into it to make the appearance of a puzzle realistic. She knew it obviously had to have been put together by this boy, lest he would not be wearing it. The Eye of Horus stared into her very soul from its point adorned in the middle of the pendant, making a shiver run through her body. She tried to keep calm, but on the inside she was panicking.

She really was going to kill Ishizu for this prediction. She resisted the urge to place a hand over her neck, remembering the feeling of the pendant around her neck. Of course, it was not the puzzle, but a similar one nonetheless, one she regretted handing over for someone to borrow. Someone who this boy needed to know was an ally…

She took brief notice of how the boy was looking at her with a similar look of shock, and she took the opportunity. She bent over, picking up the dropped package, before meeting the boy's gaze, "Excuse me, I have shopping to finish."

She quickly walked down the middle isle, disappearing behind one of the shelves housing duel monster card packages. She needed to contain herself before she left. In the state she was in, her magic would really let the streets of Domino have it…

* * *

He could not believe what he had just seen. He thought he was the only person in the world with hair like that. Disregarding the ebony black hair tied back that she possessed, his gaze had immediately been locked onto her twin yellow bangs hanging down between her eyes, the tips lightly dangling on her nose.

He cursed himself for allowing his shock to overtake him. Why had he done that? He had wanted to ask about her hair, why she had it in that style. But what shocked him even more was that Yami had seemed to be in shock as well. Yuugi could feel the spirit freeze at the sight of the girl, retreating back into the puzzle. The young duelist could feel a strange aura emanating from her, but, she couldn't be dangerous, could she?

He felt a hand grip his shoulder, and turned to see his friend standing behind him, "Come on Yuge, we gotta register for the tournament."

The duelist gave a solemn nod, "Sure Joey." He glanced once more toward the shelf the girl had hidden behind, and considered going over to talk to her. But, his mind was racing, his heart was pounding, and he really didn't feel like it at the moment.

He hardly took notice of the man behind the counter as he spoke, "May I be of assistance?"

Yuugi managed to regain himself long enough to speak, "Hi. We came to register for the Battle City tournament and receive our Duel Disks."

The man smiled, "Well then my young friends, you have come to the correct place. You are lucky enough that I have three Duel Disks left on my shelf." He glanced behind him for a moment, the teens following his gaze, seeing three large white boxed. The man turned back to the group, "But first, I have to make sure you are qualified to register. Mr. Kaiba's orders to make sure no wannabees are allowed."

Joey clenched a fist in anger lightly, the tri-colored youth hardly noticing, "Okay then. I'm Yuugi Muto."

The man reached over toward the computer nearby, "All right, Yuugi Muto." His fingers flew over the keyboard, the results he wished for soon appearing. He looked at the actual duelist in front of him, and the picture to make sure he was correct, taking note of the fabled legendary card in the boy's deck, "Very good. 5 stars; that's the highest rank."

Yuugi gazed up at the man, "Where does all this information come from?"

The man reached his hands around the computer, turning it so the teenagers could see the screen, "KaibaCorp has performed extensive research on all the top duelists of the world. The workers took the information and compiled it into a convenient database. This shows your duelist ranking as well as your rarest card ever played in a duel. To ensure he has only the best of the best competing, Mr. Kaiba has done extensive research on you and your decks."

The teen's eyes all widened, Yuugi being the first to speak, "Everything? Having knowledge of every card in our deck gives Kaiba an unfair advantage."

Tea nodded, "Agreed. Not very cool of someone who claims to be just that."

The man turned his computer back toward the wall before looking at Yuugi, "Well, as promised, since you qualify, you get this. KaibaCorp's new and improved Duel Disk system." The man reached toward the counter behind him, picking up a box and handing it to the teenager.

Yuugi took the box in his hands, letting a small smile appear, "Awesome. Thank you."

Joey reached a hand up, gently pushing his friend behind him, "Ahem, my turn. I wanna register to. Joey Wheeler's da name."

The man began typing again, "Let me see, Joey Wheeler." Seeing what appeared on the screen, he resisted the urge to laugh, "I'm sorry, you've only got a one-star ranking. That is much too low to qualify for the tournament."

Joey's eyes widened, "WHAT?! Dat' can't be! Kaiba fixed those results! I came in second in Duelist Kingdom!" Forgetting his teenager status, he began stomping around furiously like a child, expressing his frustration.

Tristan moved in behind his friend, taking a hold of his upper arms to restrain him, "Joey, just calm down! Don't have a cow!"

Tea cocked an eyebrow, "It is weird that he doesn't qualify."

"He's gonna burst a blood vessel." Yuugi barely took note of Tristan's words as he watched his blonde companion struggle against the arms holding him back. His gaze faltered though, as he looked behind the two boys, seeing the female from before standing there, looking at the shelves full of cards.

_I wonder why she's still here. She doesn't seem to be doing any shopping. Could she be spying on us?_

The man behind the desk sighed once as he watched the two males struggle against one another before he looked back at the screen. His eyes widened behind his black-rimmed glasses, suddenly glad he wore them. _He holds the rare Red-Eyes Black Dragon card. My master will surely be interesting in this._

Making sure the teens weren't watching, he quickly began hammering away at his keyboard, before holding up a hand, "I'm sorry Joey Wheeler, it appears my hard drive was malfunctioning and you actually have four stars. Congratulations, you qualify."

Tristan, out of shock, let Joey out of his restraint hold as the blonde ran toward the desk, Yuugi and Tea looking at the man in shock. "Aha, I knew it! Lemme see those beautiful stars!" Joey turned the computer around so his friends could see the screen, failing to restrain a huge grin from appearing.

"I knew the computer was wrong!" He crossed his arms over his chest, "That's why I was able to stay calm and cool while he fixed it."

The man reached behind him, picking up another duel disk box, "Best of luck." His eyes widened slightly as Joey near to snatched the box from his hands, sighing lightly at the blonde's huge grin.

Tea, Tristan, and Yuugi smiled at their friend, "Battle City, here we come."

Joey proudly tucked the box under his arm as they walked out of the store, "Who's the man?!"

Tea smirked, "Way to keep your cool Joey."

"Thanks."

The man waited for the teens to exit the building, forgetting momentarily that someone besides him was still in here. He pulled a phone from under the desk, dialing a few buttons before speaking, "Send the Rare Hunters, the boy with the Red-Eyes just left."

* * *

Akela was just about ready to exit the shop when she heard those fateful words. Those words that she hoped she wouldn't have to hear.

Quickly ducking back behind the shelf near the front entrance, she concentrated, her ears prying at the air to let her hear the words of the store owner. As soon as she heard the words 'Rare Hunters', her blood boiled, her heart pounding.

Apparently, these guys weren't even going to wait for the tournament to start before starting their first hunt…

* * *

And there is the second chapter! I know, a lot of words. However, the first one I put in here, I left out when Tea and Yami went to the museum, because at the time, I hadn't introduced them in the story. I thought it would be more interesting to introduce them on the evening the tournament was announced. I mainly focused on Akela and Kaiba so far so we all know what is going on, since Akela is a main character and ally in the story.

Akela's magic has been going funky lately, and her card spirits can tell her. Anyone have a mental guess as to what is making her power act up? Well, that's more of a question for all of you.

I would like to apologize for the delay on this chapter. My computer's hard drive failed, and even though I backed up my files, it took forever to recover the original version of this chapter I had written. Then, when I got it back, I messed around with it and produced the chapter you just finished reading.

I really hope you enjoyed this new chapter. More about Akela's past and role will be revealed as the tournament commences. Oh, and by the way, she still despises the thought of working for Kaiba. And yes, it was her idea.

Anyway, please R&R! (As we speak, I am currently hard at work on the next chapter)


	3. Chapter 3

All right fanfic readers, here we are with the third chapter! I started writing this on the day I finished and uploaded the second one. I really hope that you have enjoyed the story so far, and my original OC character. Okay, not original, but most of the ideas about her are. I just added a few new ones.

Anyway, recap time: Kaiba has finally seen the true power of Obelisk, and now plans to use it to fight his way to the finals. Akela has seen how he controls the beast, as well as spoken to Ishizu about the Pharaoh. In addition, she met Yuugi Muto, as well as finding out the Rare Hunters have a plan to hunt down the legendary Red-Eyes Black Dragon. What does Akela plan to do about it? And how does her fate tie in to that of the Pharaoh's? All will be revealed… in good time…

Disclaimer: Akela is my creation. Yu-Gi-Oh belongs to Kazuki Takahashi and whatever television program is broadcasting the show.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

She hardly took notice of the curious citizens expression' as she raced down the city block. Having made it out of the card shop without the owner noticing, she knew she had to inform Ishizu of this. The Hunters were already in the city; how had she not sensed it?

She cursed aloud; it was because he had been near. Ever since she had been close to him earlier in the shop, her magic had been acting funny. It had even sensed he was coming before she did. How could she not have seen it? It was because of her careless mistake that her magic was now out of control.

The Rare Hunters had managed to sneak in, all because she had allowed her emotions to take control. She knew she had to protect him while she was here during the tournament, but that was not the only thing that bothered her. He may not realize it yet, but she knew more about him than he himself knew.

She focused back on the streets ahead of her, seeing the museum not far ahead. The sky above her had grown dark, and she immediately felt a bit more secure. But if she had been able to use her magic to speed herself up, she would have gotten there long before the blanket of night covered Domino.

She shook her head; she could not think of that at a time like this. She looked at the entrance doors, seeing the Egyptian curator standing there. For once, she was grateful she had that cell phone on hand. Ishizu needed to know about the situation of the Hunters, and she had to know now.

* * *

Ishizu sensed Akela's distress long before the girl even got to the top of the steps. She reached a hand out, taking hold of the young girl's shoulder, anticipating what she would do next, "Calm down, take in a breath, and tell me more."

Akela sighed, "I heard the store manager talking over the phone to somebody. Not sure who exactly. It could have been the leader, or someone taking orders from the leader. Either way, he told the person to send in the Hunters because he found the Red-Eyes Black Dragon."

Ishizu grimaced, "You sure you didn't catch the name of who he was speaking to?"

Akela nodded, "I'm sure. As soon as he went to the back room, I called you, ran out of the card shop, and came straight here."

Ishizu was momentarily surprised; running that long without magic to aid you could be very taxing. She looked at Akela calmly, "You blame yourself don't you? Because you didn't know the Hunters were here."

Akela shrugged, but her face said it all; she was furious with herself, "Ever since I was out in town a little before Kaiba proclaimed about the tournament, I could feel he was nearby. As soon as that happened, my magic started acting funny. It only got worse, especially today when I ran into Yuugi Muto at the registration shop." The girl hesitated, before cocking an eyebrow, "Speaking of which, mind explaining why you said we would meet IN the tournament, when we met outside it?"

Ishizu shook her finger, "I never said you would meet during the actual tournament. I said I have forseen when you two would meet during the tournament. Actual was the key word."

Akela's face took on a dead-pan expression, "Same principle Ishizu. The tournament technically started when Kaiba began preaching about it."

Ishizu sighed, removing her hand from Akela's shoulder, "Fair enough my young friend. Is your magic stable now?"

Akela looked around briefly, her body tense, gazing over the city line, "Its stable enough to be able to find the Rare Hunter who is after Joey Wheeler tonight. Even then, the time will come soon when I need my necklace back."

Ishizu nodded, her hand moving over the pendant around her neck, "I agree. But you promised that I could keep it until the finals, whether I made it in or not."

Akela also nodded, "I know, I'm just saying the time will come soon. It does not matter exactly when, but my magic, if my temper is too high, could harm others without my knowing it. I may have full control over my individual powers, but they are still shadows. They have a will of their own."

Ishizu sighed, letting her eyes drift shut before locking them onto Akela's blood red, taking note that they were still that color, "So, how do you plan on finding Joey Wheeler if you come to the decision you won't use your magic?"

Right after she spoke, a beeping noise went off from Akela's pocket. The girl reached down into her pants pocket, pulling out what appeared to be a tiny computer of sorts. She flipped it open, looking at the monitor screen. A smirk appeared on her face, and she turned the device so Ishizu could see it, "Technology."

* * *

_I'm gonna wipe the street with this bum…_ The blonde duelist looked down at the cards he held in his hand, so far, happy with the way this duel was turning out. He currently had the lead in life points, still a solid 4000, while his opponent dangled at 2500. He had 4 monsters on the field, ready to finish the duel off, as well as a strong hand.

He hesitated for a moment before deciding what his next move would be. He did have to admit, his opponent had a rather strange strategy for playing. All he had done throughout the duel was play monsters in defense mode, as well as a bunch of Graceful Charities. While it was true you could only have one kind of card in your deck three times, what were the odds of him playing it all the times he had?

Joey Wheeler mentally sighed before gazing down at his hand again. He needed to get to the hospital as soon as he could, and to do that, he needed to win this duel. He had the perfect card to do so in his hand, but before he could touch it, a thought came back to him.

_Wait a sec, when Yuugi was tellin' me about the Battle City rules, he said somethin' about you having to sacrifice weaker monsters, to summon stronger monsters…_ He briefly gazed up at his current arsenal, Panther Warrior and Alligator Sword. _I think I can offer up those two guys to bring out my secret weapon…_

Deciding the long shot was worth it, Joey picked the card from his hand, moving his Panther Warrior and Alligator Sword to the grave, "Now, time for your worst nightmare! It's the moment I've been waiting for! I summon Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"

The moment the card was played on the field, Panther Warrior and Alligator Sword each faded into a blue ball of light before being sucked toward Red-Eyes' card. The hulking obsidian dragon quickly took to the field, its ruby eyes glaring fiercely at its master's opponent.

Joey swore he registered shock on the Rare Hunter's face, and mentally smirked, "So you wanted to see my Red-Eyes huh? Well I guess you got your wish. Take a look at this."

Red Eyes roared proudly again, his 2400 attack points ready to be used in an attack against the Hunter.

"Here we go! Red-Eyes Black Dragon, attack!" The obsidian dragon opened its maw, letting loose a shining yellow ball of energy. It flew toward the face down defense monster the Rare Hunter was using to defend himself, obliterating it from the field.

"I think this was my easiest duel ever." Joey smirked proudly at the thought of having won his first Battle City duel without the tournament having officially been kicked off yet. What he didn't see was the Rare Hunter smirk.

Said Hunter lifted his arm, placing it in front of his chest, "Foolish boy, I have been leading you through this entire hunt. I have been waiting for the moment to pounce."

Joey tilted his head slightly, perplexed as to why this Rare Hunter was preaching about winning. With his strongest card on the field, there was no way the Hunter could recover from the blows he had received. "What are ya talkin' about? I think you got your cape on too tight. I've been creamin' ya this whole duel!"

"Wrong, I'm about to finish you off."

Joey's eyes momentarily widened, as if he actually started to believe the Hunter's words, "Say what?"

The Hunter's eyes momentarily flashed yellow before he placed his fingers on the deck, drawing his next card…

* * *

Akela barely managed to regain her footing atop the building as she made her way across the city. She had been faring well so far, and knew it would be easier to locate Joey with a high-up view. But she hadn't expected a magic backlash like that one just now.

Crouching over near the edge of the building's roof, she placed a hand over her heart, taking in a few deep breaths. It wasn't very powerful magic that had struck her, but it was strong enough to make her worry. If Joey was truly dueling the Hunter she predicted, even with Red-Eyes, he would lose. That is, if that man had drawn those 5 fatal cards…

She blinked her eyes a few times, allowing them to focus on the city line as she gazed at the skyscrapers around her. She figured the Hunters would have led Joey into an alley somewhere. Like her, they enjoyed fighting in the dark; it masked their presence. It was a protective veil, a cloak for them to shroud themselves in, waiting for the precise moment to strike down their prey.

She looked back at the monitor screen of the device Kaiba had loaned her. The signal was beeping quite fast now, and she knew the duel was going on nearby. However, she feared that the magic backlash she felt had damaged the device in a way, suddenly feeling she could no longer trust it. She pocketed the handheld before closing her eyes in deep conversation.

In this world, it was not the easiest thing to do, but it was a power she had started with. Training her magic to hone in on that of others had been a simple matter. But then again, she had had other people around who also controlled a similar branch of magic to her. They could help her control it if the need arose. But now, she was on her own, and her building stress wasn't helping her focus much.

Suddenly, she felt it, south from her current position. She raced across the rooftops once more, careful to keep herself hidden from wandering eyes. She could feel the magic tugging at her heart, like a puppet master drawing its wooden toy back to it. The magic was her master, and she was its dog. Even she had her own free will though, and wouldn't let the magic completely control her. However, if it led to Joey, she would trust it just this once.

Slowing her pace as the magic grew stronger, she looked around frantically for the duel. She could hear one of the duelists speaking, but couldn't make it out clearly yet. She pooled her magic down to where she could hear the voice from, focusing it enough for her to understand their words.

As soon as they left the man's mouth though, she immediately wished she had not been eavesdropping. _I'm too late…_

* * *

"I summon Exodia the Forbidden One!"

"No way, its all over! Not Exodia!" Joey could only watch in shock as the hulking god beast rose up behind the Rare Hunter, the chain restraints shackling the god's wrists breaking like glass.

"No, how can it be?"

Without even having to utter a few words, Exodia lifted its arms, crossing them near its chest. Between its palms, a huge blast of energy began forming, aimed right for Joey Wheeler's dragon. Exodia hissed as it got ready to attack, obviously a sign it was glad to be done with this duel.

"Exodia, Obliterate." The words were spoken so nonchalantly Joey was almost jealous. He could only watch as the attack headed right for his dragon. Suddenly, a thought came racing back to him. Of how Kaiba had reacted when Yuugi summoned Exodia in their first duel. Joey looked down at his shaking hands.

_Is this what its like to face fear? Was this how Kaiba felt when he faced Exodia…?_ Red Eyes Black Dragon gave one final roar before it exploded into the holographic pixels, Joey lifting his arms to shield himself from the blast. He couldn't explain it, but it felt almost… real…

"WATCH OUT!" Joey slightly opened his eyes, seeing a person jump down from the roof above them, landing between him and Exodia's Obliteration attack. She simply raised one hand, the blast subsiding around her. It pooled around the duo, and even with her apparently shielding him, the aftershock sent the blonde duelist flying backwards onto his stomach.

He quickly used his arms to lift his upper body, turning to face the Hunter that had defeated him. He momentarily glimpsed at the person that had protected him, but was mainly focused on the cloaked male.

"Exodia's the rarest card I know. How did you manage to get ahold' of it?"

The Hunter smirked, "We Hunter thrive on rare cards, and will do anything to get them. That is why I've managed to complete three sets of Exodia. We will do anything to claim our prizes. Speaking of which, you owe us a Red-Eyes Black Dragon card."

Joey grimaced, but felt accustomed to obey; he may not have a lot of pride, but he still had it. He looked around for his faithful card, realizing it must have fallen from his disk. He glanced at the Rare Hunter that had taken a step toward him, and knew they were growing impatient, "I'll get it."

The Hunter lifted a fist, "We prefer to… take our prized by force."

The person who had defended Joey took a step forward, knuckles turning white from how hard she had her fists clenched, "Not the wisest idea."

The Hunter smirked again, three more cloaked figures stepping from the shadows, "There is only one of you, and four of us. Think you really stand a chance?"

The person nodded, "I do." With that notion, she sprinted forward, quickly swinging her leg into a roundhouse kick. Quick as that, the first Hunter went down, the other two charging forward.

Joey managed to get back up onto his feet, and though still dazed from Exodia's attack, he could still understand what was going on around him. He looked toward the group of people fighting; more specifically, toward the person who saved him. At first, he admitted the guy was pretty good, until he realized it was a girl. Not only that, it was the same girl he had bowled over in the card shop earlier that day.

He watched her fight for a moment, her movements fluid and graceful like a cat's. She launched several kicks Joey didn't even know, knocking the Rare Hunters flat onto their backs. They quickly got back up however, and Joey knew why. They would not yield until they got what they wanted.

As he watched the girl land a solid punch to one of the Hunter's faces, he looked around frantically for his card. The dirt in the alley wasn't that thick, but he admitted it was a possibility the card had gotten buried in the dust during the current scuffle going on. He searched everywhere he could though, and still no sign of the card.

He stopped his search for a moment, noticing how quiet it had gotten. He looked over, and saw that while the Rare Hunters had obviously received a good beating, they were still standing. More than that, the Hunter Joey dueled currently held Red-Eyes in his slimy little hand.

The Hunter smirked, twirling Joey's card between his fingers, "I thank you for your cooperation. Good luck competing without this card." With that, the Hunters disappeared into the shadows, leaving the female and depressed blonde duelist alone.

Joey went down on his knees, punching the ground angrily with a clenched fist. How could he have been so careless as to lose this duel? He didn't stand a chance at winning Battle City without Red-Eyes. What could he do now?

At the feeling of a soft yet firm hand on his shoulder, he looked up, seeing the girl that had protected him. Though her eyes were hidden behind the sunglasses she had on, he could tell she bore a serious expression.

She spoke in a calm, comforting tone, the sound like a soft bell echoing in a church yard, "You should get to the hospital. Someone you need to see, right? Take that alley; it's a shortcut."

Joey glanced in the direction the girl had pointed, before turning to look at her again. However, she had disappeared, just like the Hunters did. He looked around for her, wanting to have a few words with her about how she had known he was dueling at this site. But after a few minutes, he couldn't dawdle any longer. He needed to get to the hospital; he had promised his sister, and he wasn't ready to break that promise anytime soon.

* * *

"Seto, please, you need to calm down. She called me and said she would be here." Mokuva frantically tugged at his brother's trench coat, trying to get the high-temper CEO to cease his rampage. Seto had made several phone calls in the last two minutes, all to a certain black-haired Egyptian teenager. She hadn't answered then, but had called Mokuba later, informing them she was on her way.

Seto glared at his little brother, "The fact remains she promised she would be here on time this morning. She needs to get ready for her debut in the tournament."

Mokuba sighed, "For the shots you are planning broadcasting in the tournament, she already took those. She got called down the night you tested Obelisk against that Duel Bot. In fact, she actually arranged it herself. She just needs to get here so she can get ready."

Not even seconds after those words left Mokuba's mouth, one of Kaiba's servants knocked on the door.

The brunette CEO turned his attention toward the sound, "What is it?"

The servant opened the door, stepping off to the side, holding the door open for the person behind him to walk in.

At seeing her arrival, Kaiba turned to her to give her a good verbal thrashing. He briefly took in her appearance, surprised that for a girl who appeared 18, for he didn't know if she was older, she pulled off her outfit really well. She wore a pair of tan flip-flops with a silver studded gem where the straps intersected, and skinny blue jeans that came to just above her ankles. She wore a loose-fitting white v-neck shirt that hunt off one shoulder, leaving the two tank top straps exposed against her lightly tanned skin. She wore gold bracelets on each wrist, in addition to the silver one with a blue gem on the end, and a small piercing on each ear. Her hair was tied back in a ponytail that fell onto her left shoulder, her blonde bangs hanging loosely down her forehead, landing just above her nose. Her black bangs fell slightly in front of her right eye, and two loose strands of hair hung in front of her ears. Her eyes appeared a glittering ruby in the lighting of the room, but Kaiba knew better. Those eyes she possessed could fool anyone, manipulate them into doing what she wanted them to do. They were the color of freshly drawn blood, the last thing an opponent would see before they die; a reminder of what would be spilled in death.

Taking in a breath, Kaiba walked over, his posture demanding, authoritative, but Akela hardly seemed fazed. She placed a hand on her hip, cocking her leg so her weight was on her left side. Kaiba narrowed his eyes, glaring daggers at her, "Why are you late? You promised you would be here on time?"

Akela shrugged, "I have told you before I sometimes have other business I must attend to elsewhere. Clearly, you should have figured this was one of those mornings. Besides, I called Mokuba to let him know I was on my way."

Kaiba pulled out his cell phone, "I called you several times. Why did you call him back and not me to let me know you were coming?"

Akela cocked an eyebrow, "Because I knew with or without the phone, our conversation would have ended up like this."

Kaiba took a moment to regain his composure, realizing the Egyptian teen was right. He knew he had a temper, and often let it get out of control. But, if he couldn't find the Rare Hunters, she was the only one who could. He hated to admit it, but he NEEDED her if he was to have any chance of sniffing out the remaining two Egyptian god cards. And while he may despise the fact she sometimes did not listen, she was definitely a person you wanted as an ally.

Safe to say, Kaiba knew he wanted to keep her on his good side…

He sighed once, crossing his arms over his chest, "You have a point. I apologize for yelling. But when I ask you to do something, I would appreciate it if you would listen. Understood?"

Akela shrugged, and Kaiba figured he wasn't going to get much more than that out of her. He walked over to his desk, picking up a box as well as a stack of clothing. He held them out to the girl, "Here is your disk and disguise outfit for Battle City. You can get ready here, then I'll have one of my helicopters drop you off at a secret location in town. I'll tap you into the wireless communication when the tournament broadcast goes live, so you'll be ready."

The Egyptian teen gazed down at the objects in her hands before looking back up at the CEO, "Very well. I'll see you when the tournament begins."

Kaiba nodded, "Do you still have the mobile device I gave you? And the headset?"

Akela pointed at her pants pocket, then at her ear, "I've got them both on me. Don't worry, I'll keep my word and let you know if the gods make a grand entrance. Besides, I know you've got my duel disk wired so you can monitor my duel. I know every trick you've done to prepare for these hunters Kaiba. And I will say," she hesitated as she walked toward the door, stopping halfway through exiting, "Well done." With that, she closed the door behind her, walking off through the many hallways of KaibaCorp.

Kaiba let out a heavy sigh, feeling like a burden had been lifted from his chest. Akela knew of every trick he had pulled to monitor each and every duel and deck to find the Egyptian gods. He would know if she was using one without his authority. Then again, she did have those cards, but they were not what he was looking for, so he did not fear them. All he needed to focus on was finding the Rare Hunters, and making sure that if they had a god card, he could swipe it up before they could get away again.

He clenched one of his fists as he strode over to the ceiling-to-floor windows in the back of his office. It was his goal to defeat his long-time rival, and he needed the gods. And he would stop at nothing to get them…

* * *

The young tri-color haired duelist had to admit, the sight of Domino City never ceased to amaze him. He looked down at the city line from behind the chain link fence atop the roof of the building he was on, amethyst eyes taking in every sight. There was one thing he did find surprising though.

_Kaiba should be announcing the start of the Battle City Tournament any second now, and I can't find a trace of Joey or the others anywhere. I hope he shows up before this starts…_

A loud booming voice erupted above the city, nearly making the young duelist swear under his breath. He didn't even have to look up to know who it was, and started to wonder if he should make a bet with Joey about the person's next big introduction scheme.

"_Greetings duelists, and welcome to Battle City_."

Against his better judgment, Yuugi allowed his eyes to drift upward, taking note of a shadow passing over that covered nearly the entire block. A large silver blimp hovered over Domino City, each side half-covered by a large LCD screen. And on it was the face of a person Yuugi could only hold respect for on the duel field.

"_It's time for the final test. I hope that none of you entered my tournament looking for friendly competition, because Battle City is gonna be an all-out war." The CEO briefly narrowed his eyes in a serious manner before continuing, "Before my tournament begins, I thought I'd let you know what you're in for, in case any of you want to back out now. Let's begin with my new duel disks_."

Yuugi looked down at the metal device clamped on his wrists, half-listening to Kaiba's next words, "_Each one of you I thought good enough to enter this tournament received one. They allow you to duel any time, any where, and each one also comes with a tracking chip, that lets me see every move you make in a duel_."

"_Now, let's focus on the most important rule of the tournament_." Kaiba hesitated for a brief moment, inserting his duel deck into the deck slot before holding up a Blue-Eyes White Dragon card, "_The loser of each duel is required to forfeit their rarest card to the winner. If you don't have the guts to risk losing your precious cards, then I suggest you forfeit now. And, anyone who is foolish enough, can challenge me to a duel, because I will also be participating in this tournament_."

Yuugi narrowed his eyes, "I thought so."

Kaiba's image on the monitor smirked, "_But don't get your hopes up, because I intend to win. And there is one duelist out there I can't wait to defeat_."

Yuugi grimaced, "_You're on Kaiba_."

Kaiba's smirk widened, "_Speaking of which, only the 8 best duelists will make it to the finals. And these finals will be held in a secret location. In order to find the finals, you will need these locator cards_." He stopped again for a moment, holding up his own card to show the duelists of Battle City what they looked like, "_You each received one with your duel disk, but don't get excited, because one's not enough. You'll need 6 of them to make it to the tournament finals. You get your opponent's locator card when you win the duel. When you get all six, stacked together, they form a map of Battle City, and activate a global position tracking system. In doing so, the location of the finals will be transmitted to you. The tournament finals are a long way away, and most of you will be eliminated before that. If you missed any of these rules, they can be found in my tournament rulebook. Now, I have one more thing to explain_."

Yuugi's eyes widened briefly… _What other twist could Kaiba be planning? Doesn't he already have enough things in this tournament to make us worry?_

* * *

The girl took the mobile device from her pocket as soon as it started beeping. Taking one look down, she quickly read the message sent to her from the company's headquarters. She placed the duel disk on her wrist, inserted her deck into the slot, and pocketed the mobile device, drawing the cloak tighter over her body.

_It was time…_

* * *

"_As you are aware, last week when I first put out an announcement of Battle City, I mentioned that there would be a 'trick' in this tournament that would give you instant access to the finals. After scouring the globe, I managed to find a top-knotch champion duelist who now works for me. That duelist will be placed at a secret location at the start of Battle City, and will roam around just as all of you will, free to duel against any opponent. However, should you face this duelist and win, you will get a pass like this_." Kaiba held up another card, the background color what seemed like solid emerald, a golden KC symbol etched in the middle.

"_If you manage to acquire one of these passes in a duel, you may bring it to KaibaCorp, and you will get a ticket for the finals. However, this ticket can be won from you by another duelist that challenges you, so make sure you are skilled enough to even challenge my employee. That duelist's deck is stacked with some of the most powerful cards in history, so I doubt any of you will last against it. Just to help you out, I will show you a picture so you can see what the duelist looks like_."

Kaiba turned his head to the side, where an image of a young duelist popped onto the screen. Yuugi turned his head toward the side of the monitor, taking in the duelists' appearance. The face couldn't be seen, masked by the black cloak the person wore, which fell down to the person's ankles. He/she wore a black t-shirt with a white long-sleeved under it, and skinny blue jeans that rose just above a pair of black converse shoes. The person's arms were folded in beneath the cloak, but Yuugi could have sworn he glimpsed the faint image of a tattoo on the bottom of the duelists' right forearm below the shirt-sleeve.

The image vanished from the screen, leaving Kaiba's face alone again, "_Now that you've see what my employee looks like, you might have a chance at actually finding the duelist here in Battle City. And just in case that's not enough, let's just say that the duel disk looks a bit… different than yours. Like I said though, Battle City will be a war, and many of you will fall, while the top rise to greatness. Now, I believe I've covered everything, so get ready duelists, and let the tournament begin!_"

Yuugi looked down at the streets of Battle City, listening to the loud roar of the crowds as the tournament officially started. He clenched a fist, raising it to his chest, "Well, time to face my destiny." The young duelist turned and began to walk off, awaiting any challenge that came his way. However, a voice drew him back to look down at the streets.

"WHERE ARE YA, YA CREEP?!"

Yuugi gazed out over the crowd of duelists and bystanders, and only glimpsed a familiar mess of blonde hair, the owner of it wearing a white t-shirt with a dark blue stripe across the chest, blue pants, and a silver dog tag necklace.

Yuugi took another step closer to the chain link fence, already thinking about how fast he would have to run to get down to his friend in time before he got into trouble, "What's he doing?"

* * *

There he was, just sitting at a café table, an easy target for a revenge duel. Joey Wheeler narrowed his eyes as he got closer to the Rare Hunter with the computer, the same Hunter that had stolen his Red-Eyes. That night, he had vowed he would somehow get it back, even if it meant losing the rest of his deck.

But then his thoughts always kept drifting to the person that had saved him; a person he knew he would have to repay. He would think of that later though; now was the time to reclaim his card.

"Hey ya freak! I knew I'd find ya!" Joey retained a furious glare as the Rare Hunter looked up from his computer screen.

The Hunter merely smirked at the blonde duelist, "Heh, didn't you learn your lesson already?"

Joey's glare intensified, "Yeah, never let a creep in a cape slap ya' around."

"You fool."

"Listen, you have my Red-Eyes Black Dragon, and I want it back, so its time to duel!" Joey lifted an accusing finger, pointing at the Hunter, ushering on the challenge.

"I have no desire to duel you again. I have already taken you rarest card, so my hunt for your deck is over." The Hunter stood, his palms on the café table edge, "My prey has already been captured, so I suggest you leave."

"Well that's too bad, because I'm not leavin' till I win back my Red-Eyes!"

"Joey, what's going on?!" At hearing the familiar yell, the blonde duelist turned around, seeing his best friend run toward him, a duel disk placed on his left arm, ready for a challenge.

* * *

Yuugi Muto actually had to give himself some credit; in his rush to get down here, he had probably cleared the stairs down the building in record time for a person his size. But then again, he had a reason to get down here to the street that fast. At hearing Joey's insistent yelling, he automatically figured something was wrong with his friend, and he had to find out what.

So he had pretty much flown down the staircase like a bird through a narrow canyon, only slowing his speed as he neared his blonde friend.

"What're you yelling abo-" Yuugi had meant to finish that sentence, but one look at Joey's opponent caused the words to fall short of exiting his mouth. He noticed the Rare Hunter narrowing his eyes, but didn't back off from the glare, having seen one too many of those on a friend's face before. Something about this guy made him feel uneasy, and he placed a hand over his Millennium Puzzle as Joey pointed an accusing finger at the Hunter.

"That's one of the creeps I was tellin' you about! He's part of the group that stole my Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"

Yuugi glanced back at the Rare Hunter, his mind flashing back to what had happened a few days prior. _That robe… he's dressed just like Bandit Keith was. Could he be the one who's after my puzzle?..._

Joey continued on in his rant, Yuugi half-registering his friend's words, rage building inside him, "Dey call demselves' da Rare Hunters, which to me translates into cape-wearin' card-stealin' freakazoids!"

Joey stepped forward in front of his fellow duelist, glaring daggers at the Hunter, "And dis' one owes me a rematch so I can win back my Red-Eyes Black Dragon."

The Hunter placed a hand on his computer, gently closing the lid, as his face twisted into a sinister smirk, "I already told you, there is no card in your deck of any use to me. But, perhaps your friend would be interested in being my next victim. It would be my pleasure to hunt down the Duelist Kingdom champion, and snag his Dark Magician card. So, I challenge you to a duel Yuugi Muto."

Joey stepped forward, but Yuugi placed a hand in front of him, "Fine Rare Hunter, I accept your challenge."

Joey looked at his friend in shock, "But Yuge-"

"It's the only way to get back your Red-Eyes Black Dragon. I promise you I'll beat him Joey." As soon as he finished speaking, the Millennium Puzzle began glowing, and in a brief flash of light, the spirit had taken over.

"So do we have a deal Rare Hunter? As my first Battle City opponent, if you lose, you must return Joey's Red-Eyes Black Dragon. And if you win this duel, I'll forfeit my Dark Magician to you."

Joey looked at his friend, "Yuugi, don't do this. I can take him on my own. I'll never forgive myself if his ugly bum takes your most valuable card. I'll deal with this. It's my-" Joey halted mid-sentence as Yuugi help up a hand.

"Thank you Joey, but I must duel this Rare Hunter."

"Actually, you won't." Those three words cut through the tension in the air like a knife through butter, and the three duelists all turned their attention to the left.

A figure about Joey's height was walking toward the group, black cloak pulled tight around his/her body. Not much could be seen underneath the cloak, but one could tell that the person wore a duel disk on their left arm.

The Rare Hunter looked over at the approaching figure, narrowing his eyes, "Well well, looks like we have an unplanned interruption."

The duelist lifted his/her arm up, revealing what was indeed a duel disk on the left arm. However, what struck the trio was the color of it. Instead of silver, it was styled black, the base of the card slots were colored golden yellow, and the holographic design images were a dark purple, "Actually, you have a challenge."

Yuugi and Joey looked at one another in confusion as the Hunter spoke again, "What are you blathering about? I challenged Yuugi Muto, not you."

The person hardly even flinched, remaining perfectly still except for the mouth, "I received reports last night that an unauthorized duel was organized with the disks on the outskirts of town. While these disks may have been okay for practice duels, you dueled using the new tournament rules. These were not authorized until today, so technically Joey Wheeler, you dueled an illegal match."

The blonde looked over at the masked figure, "How do you know my name?"

The figure turned, "I did just say that I found out about this from a report. Your duel disk was sending signals to me, and that's how I found out about it. So due to that, this Rare Hunter must duel me and win if he wishes to stay in this tournament. A Battle City rule enforced by Mr. Kaiba himself, should an illegal duel be hosted."

* * *

Yami froze at hearing those words from the figure's mouth. Kaiba had published a rule book explaining how Battle City would work, but there was no mention of what this person had just said. Kaiba hadn't put anywhere in the book anything about special rules he enforced when it came to illegal matches. So, if that was the case, then how could this person have known?

Kaiba's system was too advanced to allow anyone to try and hack into his system, let alone get past the firewall. Even though this person's persona practically screamed authoritative, even the tri-color haired duelist doubted the figure was a hacker. So, if the person hadn't hacked into the system, how could he/she have known about Joey's duel?

Suddenly, a thought struck him, something that Kaiba had mentioned not 20 minutes before this confrontation.

_Could that be…_

* * *

Akela narrowed her eyes at the Rare Hunter. Indeed, this was the same man she had beaten the night he challenged Joey to that illegal match. What surprised her though was that these three duelists had actually bought into her lie.

Sure, Kaiba had told her every rule and regulation about hosting illegal matches, and that tournament rules could be applied before it even began. However, this hunter didn't seem to know that, and she figured she could use that fact to her advantage. Never mind the fact that Joey Wheeler and Yuugi Muto were watching, this Hunter was also one she had a score to settle. Besides the fact that he had nearly sent a dear friend of hers to the shadow realm last time he dueled, he also left her with a… reminder of how ruthless he was.

Akela placed her left palm on her right forearm, where she could feel the ink of the tattoo covering up a scar she so desperately wished to hide. But unless she wore long sleeves, it could be seen by anything and anyone if she allowed it. She normally kept her forearm turned inward so people couldn't see the scar, but that did not change the fact that she had one. It was always there to remind her, her skin permanently marked; it was what the Rare Hunters were not afraid to do should their plans fail and they needed a last resort.

Akela mentally slapped herself to get her mind to focus. She had a duel to fight, and she would be damned if she let this man walk away with her rarest card, let alone Yuugi's. An advantage for her was that this Rare Hunter didn't even know who she was, much less what her rarest card was. Scratch that, she had more like three of them, but she wouldn't reveal that to anyone. Not even Kaiba…

She lifted her arm up to her chest, the Duel Disk system turning on as she inserted her deck into the slot, "Well, are you going to face up to a challenge? Or are you going to run and hide in the shadows like the scared little boy you are?"

The Hunter smirked and raised his arm as well, his own Duel Disk system activating. The holo-imagers on the side of the disk flew off into the four corners of their small arena as each duelist shuffled their deck.

The Hunter looked at the young girl, "So, as a recap for the rules, here it is. You win, I'll hand back Joey's Red-Eyes Black Dragon, and my locator card. You lose however, I keep the card, as well as acquire Yuugi Muto's Dark Magician, and your rarest card."

Joey and Yuugi's eyes widened, the blonde suddenly not trusting this female anymore, "Okay, dat's it. Back outta dis duel now. Dere is no way you are riskin' our cards just to kick dis guy outta da tournament!"

The girl glanced back at the two male duelists, "Would you rather have me forfeit the match and let him win anyway?"

Joey backed off, grunting a bit in frustration. Akela turned back to the Rare Hunter, awaiting to see who he would select to go first, as she had been the one to challenge him. She heard a quiet whisper off to the side, and risked a glance. She let a small smile appear at seeing one of her friends, surprised he had managed to come here.

'_Ty, what are you doing here? Did Moss and Fang help you out?_'

The spirit nodded, '_Indeed they did. I have very little time though. The gods have given you the all clear to unleash your power on this man. They sense nothing but darkness in his soul._'

Akela gave a quiet nod, '_Good. I sensed it too. But at least now I will not get into trouble for using my power._'

Ty looked at the Rare Hunter, '_I can sense the shadows in him are strong. I suggest you be careful. He is not who he seems._'

With that, the spirit disappeared, leaving Akela to begin formulating duel plans, and wonder about his last few words. However, she did not wonder long, for she already knew what Ty meant. But, nothing had changed yet; this Rare Hunter would still grovel at her feet when he lost, begging for the mercy he did not deserve. And it would be the same way once she got to their leader, and humiliated him at his own game…

She narrowed her eyes at the Hunter, both of them drawing a hand of 5 cards to start the duel.

* * *

_"Detecting activation of Duel Disk Battle system. Competitors: Akela vs. Rare Hunter. Beaming duel status to KaibaCorp mainframe."_

The duel system workers began feverously typing at their keyboards, making sure that all the holographic systems were working properly. Several screens at once began downloading the proper software needed for the duel to function properly, the infamous CEO monitoring every action.

_Damnit Akela, what is so hard about following my instructions…?_ Kaiba did have to admit though, he was surprised it was his employee that was competing in the very first duel. More than that, he was surprised she had managed to find a Rare Hunter so quickly. She must have taken to the streets as soon as she was alerted about the broadcast.

But then again, how was it she had known exactly where the Rare Hunter would be? Surely, if she had some sort of tracking device, or a sixth sense, it wasn't that good, was it? Kaiba shook the thought from his head, watching as a live video monitor of the duel came on. Sure enough, the Rare Hunter stood across from Akela, the young female still concealing her identity with the black cloak he gave her. He glanced around to see how many patrons were watching the duel, and was in shock as to who he saw.

_What is Yuugi doing there? And Wheeler for that matter. Was it possible that Yuugi was the one that wanted to challenge the Hunter first?..._

He gripped a corner of his trench coat, tapping a hidden button with his finger. As soon as the duel ended, he needed to have a few choice words with that girl.

* * *

The Hunter glanced down at his hand, smirking at what he saw. _Excellent. I already have two pieces of Exodia. When I get all five in my hand, I'll summon the almighty Exodia the Forbidden One, and obliterate this girl from the tournament…_

He looked back up at his opponent, "As always-"

"Ladies first?" The girl smirked, her eyes narrowed at the Rare Hunter. Glancing over, he could have sworn he glimpsed a smirk appear on Joey Wheeler's face, while Yuugi Muto seemed to be fixated on the female duelist. He took note of this; clearly Yuugi knew something about this girl, or vice versa. If they were hiding something, he would shake it out of them when he won the duel. He placed two fingers on his deck, prepared for his turn, the first of the duel.

"Let's see, my first card will be," he hesitated for a moment, looking down, "as I suspected. A Graceful Charity; it lets me draw three cards, as long as I discard two."

As he drew the cards, he took a moment to gaze at the face of his opponent. Though most of it was hidden, the duelist seemed to be remaining perfectly stoic, hardly fazed by what his first move had been. Clearly she was either a master at poker, or just a really experience duelist who had seen it all.

He looked down at his hand. _Perfect… the third piece of Exodia. Only two more pieces left…_

He lifted his head, looking at the female duelist, "If you only knew what was in my hand waiting, you'd forfeit now, and relinquish your rarest card to me."

The female duelist lifted her arm toward her chest, "You only wish. I never back down from a fight, and I certainly am not going to start now. Especially after what you did to me and Joey Wheeler."

The Rare Hunter seemed perplexed for a moment. So, this was a grudge duel? What kind of grudge could this duelist be holding against him? So far as he knew, he hadn't ever met her before. Of course, he knew what he'd done to Joey Wheeler, but…

Wait, there was that other person last night. He hadn't seen the girl's face, but, was it possible that Wheeler's rescuer and this person could be one in the same? No, what were the odds? It was way to coincidental for that to be true.

Now, his hand was strong, but he got a feeling that this duelist's deck held power, a fiery spirit like its owner. If that was the case, he would not risk leaving his life points defenseless. He took a card from his hand, placing it in the card slot face down. His monsters were all specialized in defense, and though he figured this girl had strong monsters, he knew she would not pass up an attack. If she had a monster with weaker attack than his monster's defense, she would feel the attack right back.

"I end my turn."

* * *

Yami looked at the duel with intensity in his eyes, his eyes mostly focused on the girl that had challenged the Rare Hunter. For some reason, he felt he knew this girl from somewhere. He may not remember where, but the memory seemed so fresh, clawing at his mind like an angry cat. Her demeanor when she was dueling, her classic duelist posture, the way she handled her cards like they were treasures rather than pieces of paper.

In a way, as a duelist, she was similar to him. They both refused to give up on challenges, and stood up for people who needed help. After all, she had marched in and challenged the Rare Hunter in order to reclaim Joey's dragon, not only because the match was illegal, but apparently, a score needed to be settled.

It made the tri-color haired duelist wonder though, how did the Rare Hunter and this girl know one another? He could tell, even from her hand, that this girl came from a place with a lot of sun, while the man had skin that appeared stretched over his face. Clearly, they came from different parts of the world. How could they have met?

Then again, Kaiba had mentioned that he had hired this duelist specifically because she was a high-ranking champion. And these Rare Hunters were all over the city. Could it be Kaiba was also somehow hunting these men down? Was that what this girl's purpose was? She was working for Kaiba as an eliminator? But, Kaiba despised any tournament that Yuugi and Joey participated in. Why was this girl defending them?

She must have a will of her own. And clearly, she would not end the duel, wanting to finish this grudge match on her own terms…

* * *

Akela looked down at her hand. It was not the perfect hand to start with. Had it been, the duel would be over this turn. Despite her nagging sensation to help out Joey Wheeler reclaim his Red-Eyes, and save Yuugi from losing his Dark Magician, she needed to get out of this part of the city. As soon as anybody figured out that she was the duelist that Kaiba hired with a ticket to the finals, she would be hounded like a piece of meat by bloodthirsty dogs.

However, the duel had started and she would finish it when she wanted. The Rare Hunter would never believe her, but with her hand, she had complete control of the match. The perfect way to end this duel was with her dragon, and it was already in her hand. Now, the trick was getting the necessary monsters to summon it.

She felt eyes burning the back of her neck, a sensation that someone was watching her. She risked a glance to her right, and saw Yuugi Muto looking right back at her. Actually on closer observation, she noticed the differences.

_So, the spirit has taken over. The spirit…_

She turned back to the Hunter, knowing she had to focus on the duel. Letting her mind wander now would diminish her chances for winning, and reclaiming Joey's card.

She drew a card from her deck, examined her hand, a plan formulating in her mind.

"To start off my turn, I'll place one card face down on the field. Then, I'll summon out Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress, in attack mode." The holo-imagers flashed before a female magician clothed in white with long black hair appeared near the female duelist. She twirled her golden staff once before facing the Hunter, her brown eyes narrowed angrily.

Akela saw the Hunter tense up for a minute, as if the anger was radiating off of Lyla. Clearly, this Hunter didn't know Akela's monsters fed off of her emotion. It wasn't healthy for them, but like her, they loved to fight, to defeat their enemies and send them to the shadows. And Lyla was only the first step in achieving a win in this duel.

"Now, since you started this duel off, because it is the second round, I am allowed to attack you. Go Lyla, attack his face down monster, with your Illumination Strike!"

Lyla twirled her staff once more as the gem on the end began to glow, a pool of energy forming before she fired her attack at the Hunter's face down monster. The card flipped up, revealing a large gray and green stone statue with a face in the center, its yellow eyes glowing. It moved its hands in front of its body, and everyone watched as Lyla's attack bounced off, heading right back for Akela. The attack struck dead on, but the female duelist didn't even flinch, watching as her mage came back to her side.

She placed her thumb and pointer finger on her deck, "Now, as it is the end phase of my turn, due to Lyla's special ability, I must discard three cards from my deck to the grave." Doing just that, she made sure to get a glimpse of the cards, to see if any of the keys she needed went to the grave.

_One down, three to go…_

* * *

Joey cocked an eyebrow as the monster under the female's control appeared on the field, "Lightsworn monsters? Ever heard of em' Yuge?"

Yami only half-registered his friend's words, but heard enough, "Never before now. What I wonder is why she would play a monster that forces her to discard cards at the end of each turn."

'_Maybe there's a reason for that, we just don't know what it is._' Yami turned his head slightly to the left, seeing Yuugi's spirit next to him.

'**_Perhaps. But what kind of a deck functions off sending the monsters to the graveyard?_**'

'_I don't know._'

* * *

He couldn't believe she had fallen for that. Attacking his face down monster was such a rookie mistake. But, it proved his prediction was true; this girl would not resist the opportunity to attack. Obviously, she seemed in a hurry to end this duel. Too bad for her he had the same idea, only with a different outcome in mind. He looked down at his deck, smirking as he did so.

"I predict another Graceful Charity will be my next draw." He took a moment to draw the card, and placed it in the slot, "As I imagined, I was right. Now I'll draw three new cards, and discard two." He looked down at his hand again, something he failed to notice his opponent had picked up on.

_Excellent. I now have four pieces of Exodia. Only one more, and I'll be able to summon the almighty beast to my field. Then, once I do so, I'll be able to take Yuugi's Dark Magician, as well as his Millennium Puzzle, and my opponent's rarest card…_

* * *

Yami couldn't help but notice what he hoped the girl had picked up on… why did the Hunter keep looking down at his hand. Never mind the fact that all he had done so far was play defense and draw cards. Obviously, he was waiting for something, but what was so special about his hand?

Yami felt an elbow poke him, and looked over, seeing Joey's worried expression. The blonde duelist placed a hand by his mouth, palm facing out, obviously trying to block his words from reaching the female's ears, "You really think we can trust this girl?"

Yami shrugged, unsure of how to respond. _I was just thinking the same thing…_

* * *

Me: And that concludes the third chapter. I guess you could say I ended it with a bit of the cliffy, but its your opinion. I really hope that you have enjoyed the story so far. Please fell free to message me with any questions you may have about something I have not yet explained, and I will try and fit it into the next chapter.

Readers: We have one. Who are those spirits Akela talks to?

Me: I will reveal it, eventually. More than that, how do you guys think she can speak to the spirits? Like I said, all will be revealed.

Please R&R! I hope you enjoyed the third chapter. Next update coming soon.


	4. Chapter 4

And here we are at the fourth chapter of my story. So, what did you guys think of the last chapter? I really hope you enjoyed it. I know, they might be a bit long. So I am aiming to cut down on the amount of words I use per chapter, so that way readers don't lose interest in my story. But I hope you have enjoyed it so far, as well as hope you enjoy this new chapter.

Recap time: Joey dueled a Rare Hunter with the Exodia deck and lost his Red-Eyes Black Dragon. But he was saved from a beating by a mysterious figure. Who could she be? Kaiba kicked off his Battle City tournament, with the Exodia Hunter and Akela in the first duel of the tournament. Is the Rare Hunter correct, that this is a grudge match? If so, what could the grudge Akela is holding against him be about? How did she get the scar that she has on her arm? Who are the spirits she was talking to? And, more importantly, can she defeat the Exodia Hunter before the godly beast can defeat her?

Disclaimer: Akela is my creation. Yu-Gi-Oh belongs to Kazuki Takahashi and whatever television program is broadcasting the show.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

The Rare Hunter could only smirk as he gazed at the cards he held in his hand, feeling he already had this duel won easily. With the four Exodia limbs he currently possessed, all he could do was wait until the final limb came to his hand. Then again, of course, he already had a way to know what card he would draw next turn.

He gazed down at his deck, his right eye flashing red briefly. The card at the top wasn't what he hoped for, but it would buy him some time. And that was what this deck functioned off of; allowing time for drawing while your opponent could only chip away at your life. Then, a brilliant come from behind win, with the almighty godly beast obeying every command given.

He placed his fingers on a spell card, one that Yuugi Muto was all too-familiar with, "I think I'll continue my turn with the spell card, Pot of Greed." The gigantic green jar with a wicked smile appeared on the field, and for a moment, his opponent seemed to tense up. "Pot of Greed, as you should know, allows me to draw two cards from my deck."

Doing so, he acquired the card he had seen, and another spell. _Urgh, not exactly what I hoped for. Its strange… normally I would have gotten the final piece of Exodia by now._ He lifted his head, staring at his opponent. _No matter. It will be only a matter of time before her deck falls, and her treasures will be mine…_

"I'll end my turn with a monster in face-down defense mode."

He could see the girl consider her next move as she drew a card, and didn't even try to hide the smirk playing at his lips.

* * *

Joey Wheeler narrowed his eyes at the Rare Hunter as the duel commenced, so far, not in the girl's favor. "Urgh, how I'd love ta wipe dat ugly smirk offa his face." He raised a hand, clenching it into a fist, ignoring his friend next to him.

Yami placed a hand on Joey's shoulder, "Joey, you must calm down. We must believe in this girl that she can win the duel. While it may not look it at first, I think she knows what she is doing."

As the tri-colored duelist had watched the duel, how she had conducted her last turn, a thousand deck options began playing through his mind. True, he had never seen, lest heard, of the monsters this girl possessed, but he did know one thing. If a deck functioned off of sending cards to the grave, monster or not, then there had to be a secret weapon of sorts. And the weapon must function off how many cards were in the grave.

Joey gazed down at the spirit, "You sure we should trust her? Cuz tings' aren't exactly goin' in her favor right now."

Yami nodded, "I believe we should trust her. I get the feeling there is more to this girl than first glance tells."

'_So, basically, you're saying just see how this duel turns out, and we'll see if we can trust her then?_'

Yami glanced to the side, seeing Yuugi's spirit next to him, **_'Not exactly that, but in a similar manner. This girl obviously wants to fight the Rare Hunters. We may not know exactly why, but Ishizu said we would have help in the tournament. I have a feeling this girl is who she was talking about.'_**

As the two looked back up, Yuugi could only sigh, '_I sure hope you're right about this Yami._'

* * *

It was just perfect really, how this duel was turning out so far. Sure, it may not have been an OTK like she hoped, but the more defense this guy played, the more he set himself up. She had already sent one key part of the summoning to the graveyard. It would take a bit of work to get the other three, but it was nothing she couldn't pull off. This deck may not be her favorite style, as she hated sacrificing her cards like she was right now. But with the deck she knew this guy had, it was the best combat she could offer.

She looked at the card she had drawn, in addition to what she had in her hand. At the best, she would have to wait one more turn; another turn that would give duelists, Hunter or not, a chance to find her and try to defeat her. And frankly, that wasn't really what she wanted. All she could focus on was winning this duel, and finishing off the rest of the Hunters before they could get to the spirit.

She looked over at the two duelists she was currently defending, her gaze drifting to the shorter one. _The spirit…_ In honest perspective, she really had thought she would never see him again. Ever since he had sealed himself in the puzzle, she had promised the gods she would defend his pyramid. It was only by chance that Yuugi Muto's grandfather had been allowed to pass through and acquire the puzzle. Destiny had been at work there, and she knew better than to argue with it.

First things first though, if she wanted to fight the rest of the Hunters, she had to banish this one first, "I'll start my turn off with the spell card Foolish Burial." A giant gray hand appeared from the ground as the spell card took effect, "It allows me to search my deck for a card I don't want, and put it into my graveyard."

The hand shot towards her deck, pulling out a seemingly random card, which she then placed in her graveyard. Almost immediately after though, the monster she must have sent reappeared on the field.

The Hunter gasped lightly, "How did you summon that monster? I thought you just sent that thing to the graveyard."

Akela chuckled, "Brush up on the rules Seeker." She smirked at his reaction from her using his real name, "The monster I sent to the grave was Wulf, Lightsworn Beast. When he is sent directly from my deck to the grave, I can summon him back to the field."

The mighty white wolf beast roared as it stood on two feet, its golden claws poised and ready to strike. "I think I'll test him out now. Wulf, attack his Stone Statue of the Aztecs!"

As the wolf charged forward, the statue lifted its giant hands to block the incoming attack. However, they did little to protect him, as Wulf sliced cleanly through them, before obliterating the beast completely.

Seeker raised one hand to block the shockwave from coming his way, feeling his feet slide back a little. He looked down at the ground. _What was that just now? I actually felt that attack. It was almost as if it was… real…_

Suddenly, the realization hit him, and he looked up at the female duelist, "Its you… the WG tamer. I thought I destroyed you!"

Akela grimaced at the nickname given to her by the Hunters, but hid it behind the shadows of the cloak she wore, "Took you long enough to figure out who I was. And as you can see," she held out her arms to her side, "I am very much alive, and ready to get my revenge."

Seeker's eyes widened, "Don't blame me for what happened last time! That was my master doing the dirty work!"

Akela's eyes narrowed, "Don't even try that talk with me! It doesn't matter if he had you under his control! You still listened to him, and it was your fault that my friend was nearly sent to the Shadow Realm! You're also why I have this as a reminder of that day!" The girl pointed to her right forearm, but Seeker didn't even need to see it to know what lay below the cloak.

The girl calmed a bit, her form loosing its tension, "It was your fault that day. My friend was nearly lost, and your master would have gotten away with my soul as well had I not managed to win. Lucky for you, it wasn't a Shadow Game, and you're lucky this one isn't either!"

Seeker looked down at his hand briefly, knowing he had to win fast. He could only watch though, a shocked look in his eyes, as Akela made her next move, "I'll next activate Charge of the Light Brigade. As a sacrifice, I must discard the top three cards of my deck to the grave, but in exchange, I can take a random Lightsworn Monster, and add it to my hand."

The sky above the duel field glowed briefly before a large white wolf with golden markings ran down toward Akela's side of the field. It looked her in the eye as its body began glowing, before changing down into an orb of light, flying straight into her deck. The cards glowed briefly as she removed the top three, discarded them, then picked another and added it to her hand.

"I'll then play the card in face down defensive mode, and end my turn."

Even though it had been a quick glimpse, she had seen what she needed, and knew she was a step closer. _It will all end next turn…_

* * *

So it was true; somehow, the Hunter named Seeker and this female duelist had a grudge against one another. And obviously, that grudge ran very deep. He didn't know how far back it went into their past, but he knew that this duel was now about more than just the Millennium Puzzle and their rarest cards. It was a score to settle with a person that had ruined your life…

Yami couldn't help but glance back and forth between Seeker and the female, his head swimming with all the possibilities of what could have happened. The female said that on the day they dueled when the grudge was established, she had nearly lost a friend. Seeker had been under someone's control, and the female had also come out with a permanent reminder of sorts. He didn't know what she meant by that, but he knew it gave her a new incentive to win. She was hoping that by winning, she could erase the scars of her past, finally settle a score that had been left standing for who knows how long.

Based on what he had seen in these few short turns, the female clearly knew how to handle her deck well. He knew it pained her, as he saw her face. But clearly, like Seeker was, she was waiting for the opportune time to bring out her hidden weapon.

It must have something to do with all these Lightsworn monsters she kept playing. They had good effects, that was for sure, and if she had more than just these two on the field, then her monsters would be well balanced. However, he had a feeling this duel would end soon. He could practically see it in the female duelists' eyes, eyes that seemed familiar to him somehow.

His attention on her eyes put aside, he focused back on the duel. He had figured that the female had a hidden weapon, but she didn't have the same strategy that Seeker had. He was just drawing and playing defense, whereas she had gone on the offensive. Clearly, his deck focused heavily on shielding the duelist's life while he waited for the cards needed. Where had he seen that before?

Suddenly, it came back to him. A very similar strategy had been told to him by Yuugi's grandfather, a strategy used to get the cards necessary to summon that beast… the very beast that he had crushed Kaiba with before Duelist Kingdom.

Yami brought a hand up to shield his mouth, letting only Joey hear his words, "Joey, this Hunter… did he summon Exodia against you when you dueled?"

Joey grimaced, clenching his fists, "Yeah, this is the exact same stuff he pulled on me. Bidding his time, drawing cards, and then he just played Exodia all of a sudden. My Red-Eyes didn't stand a chance."

Yami looked back at the duel, "Let's hope somehow, this girl does."

* * *

_Urgh, why is it I got a duplicate? Is this deck working against me or something…?_ Seeker glared down at the cards in his hand, depressed that even though he had prayed for Exodia's final limb, he had merely gotten a second head instead. Sure, he still had his defensive monster on the field, but with Wulf's attack strength, he would easily overcome it. And then that girl would be able to land a direct attack with her sorceress. It may take a few turns to fully wipe him out, but if he did not summon out Exodia before then, either way, he would lose.

Angry that he only had one option, he chose to play it, rather than lose life next turn, "I'll first play another monster face down in defense mode, and activate the Swords of Revealing Light spell card!"

The light above the duel arena grew bright as several giant swords appeared on the girl's side of the field. Wulf roared in anger, while Lyla tried to break one of the swords with her staff. "Its useless. For the next three turns, those swords will keep your monsters locked up tight, while I build up my defensive strength. I'll end it here. No use in prolonging a duel I already know I will win."

The girl drew another card from her deck, signaling the start of her turn. Even though she had a perfect poker face, Seeker didn't miss the plain-as-day smirk, "You don't even have next turn to last Hunter. This duel is mine."

Seeker grimaced, "And how will that be possible? You can't attack, and even if you do, I still have enough monsters to shield my life points."

The girl took the face down monster Seeker had forgotten she played, flipping it face up, "I'll start with this! I change my Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter, into attack mode!" A wolf identical to the one that had appeared during Charge of the Light Brigade ran onto the field, its fangs visible, gleaming a deadly white. "When he is flipped face-up, I can choose one card on the field, and destroy it. I think that I'll have Ryko destroy itself."

The girl flung an arm out, watching as the white wolf quickly vanished from the field, "As a sacrifice, I must again send three cards to my grave. But that is only the first step."

Seeker arched an eyebrow. _What could she be planning…?_

* * *

Akela smirked; this was it. She was finally going to disband her grudge against this Rare Hunter. The darkness in his soul would finally go back to where it belonged, and she could put this part of her past behind her.

But there were some parts she could also never let go of… but that did not relate to her current situation. She picked a card from her hand, placing it into the monster slot, "Now, due to the fact that I have four Lightsworn monsters in my graveyard, Lumina the Summoner, Lyla the Sorceress, Ryko the Hunter, and Ehren the Monk, I can now summon out one of the mightiest beasts in my deck! Behold, my Judgment Dragon!"

The wind around the duel arena picked up, gale forces nearly blowing the bystanders off their feet. A large beam of light shot down to the ground, a roar erupting through the air. As the light diminished, four sets of blood red claws scraped the ground like nails on a chalkboard, Seeker taking a step back as he covered his ears.

Akela only registered Joey Wheeler and Yuugi Muto gasp as the dragon stood up to its full height behind her, maneuvering its massive body so she was between its front legs. The large white beast had a frilled neck like that of a birds', and, unlike a regular dragon, it had soft fur covering its body instead of scales. Its large white wings spread out were about the size of three school buses put together, its long tail flicking out behind it. Its blood red claws shimmered in the light of the sun, not entirely unlike Akela's own set of uniquely colored orbs. Several long frills stretched out from behind its head, like tentacles of an octopus, each one covered in fur like its body. Two whiskers came out from the side of its nose, and its eyes mirrored the color of its claws.

In a way, the dragon could have been the symbol for death, its eyes the last thing a duelist would see before they lost…

Akela looked up at her mighty dragon briefly, letting a small smile appear on her face. The dragon bent its majestic head, looking into the eyes of its master. She nodded briefly as the dragon let out another roar, the Rare Hunter taking another step back.

Akela narrowed her eyes, "You nearly ruined my friend's life the last time we dueled. And now, you will pay the price for your master." She said those words almost venomously, even surprising herself with how they sounded coming out of her mouth. But she didn't care about that now; this duel was now under her control.

Seeker smirked, "But, your dragon still can't attack. My Swords of Revealing Light will stop it in its tracks."

Akela shook her head, "Again, brush up on the rules. Judgment Dragon can destroy any and all cards on the field, except himself, for the mere exchange of 1000 Life Points."

Judgment Dragon opened it mouth, a red beam of light appearing as Akela's Life Points sank to 2700. Though the Rare Hunter still stood at the perfect 4000, he did not stand a chance. The red beam of light flashed over the entire field, the Hunter's swords, Giant Soldier of Stone, and Exodia head evaporating like mist. Lyla and Wulf followed suit, causing Akela to grimace a little in response.

Seeker glanced at the empty duel field in shock, ignoring the giant white dragon, "My monsters! Now I have nothing to defend myself!"

Akela smirked, "And no way to win this duel. I will next summon out Ehren, Lightsworn Monk! And I'll have them both attack you directly!"

A human with tan skin and red robes appeared next to the dragon's clawed foot, both of them nodding at one another as they got ready for an attack. Judgment Dragon opened its mouth again, a golden beam forming as Ehren got ready to charge forward. He unsheathed his knives from his wrists, slashing at Seeker, diminishing 1600 of his Life Points. Judgment Dragon let its attack loose, everyone watching with shock as the Rare Hunter screamed, his Life Points falling to zero.

* * *

To say Kaiba was surprised would be an understatement. Sure, he had expected Akela's deck to be strong, but not that cunning. The girl had merely appeared to be toying with the Hunter, let him think he was winning the whole time. And yet, her plan had already fallen perfectly in place when her monsters' effects activated.

Ishizu really had not been kidding about this girl's skills.

Mokuba's eyes widened as he looked at the duel monitor board, "I can't believe it! Akela won!"

Kaiba's eyes were drawn however to the background of the duel, where he could see his rival standing. _Makes me almost wish Akela hadn't butted in that duel. Then I could've seen Yuugi's skills with his new deck…_

That one thought brought a reminder to the CEO's brain. He gently gripped the edge of his trench coat, hitting a small button beneath the KC logo. A few seconds later, he could hear a voice over the speaker.

"_You need me for something Kaiba?_"

"Akela, I'm surprised that you managed to find a Hunter so quickly, I will admit. However, why did you not allow Yuugi to duel him? I thought you told me you wouldn't interfere in his duels."

"_If it had been a different Rare Hunter Kaiba, believe me, I would have turned and walked off. But Seeker had what was coming to him. I may have had to bring up a fake rule, but I needed to duel him._"

Kaiba took a moment to realize that Akela had actually called the Hunter by a specific name, before he spoke again, "He one of the Hunters you wanted to get revenge on?"

He heard Akela scoff, "_I could fill an encyclopedia with the names of the Rare Hunters I want to get revenge on. Let's just say that this duel was a little more personal._"

Kaiba grimaced lightly, wanting to make a point, but knew it would lead to nowhere. He took a deep breath, "Fine, I get it. However, next time you see Yuugi dueling, stay out of it. I want to get a look at his deck to see what skills he may possesses-"

"_Even though there is one card he can never beat and you're the one holding it. I know that line Kaiba, I've heard it from you a thousand times._"

Mokuba smirked, "More like a thousand and one."

Kaiba heard Akela chuckle lightly before he drew the speaker closer to him, "Like I said, stay out of Yuugi's duels. You said that your job in this tournament would be finding the Rare Hunters for me. So why not get to it?"

He heard a sigh, "_Fine Kaiba, don't nag me anymore about it, and I will get to it._" The CEO head a small beep, signaling that Akela had either ended the call, of turned off the chip in her ear. Either way, it seemed pretty clear that she wasn't in the mood for talking right now.

Kaiba looked up once more briefly at the monitor, where he could see an outline of all the cards Akela had played in her duel, as well as the ones she had in her deck. He had gotten her permission to scan her cards so it would appear official that she was in the tournament. However, one thing puzzled him… three of the cards appeared as blank holes, just empty black spaces. He was sure that the images had been there before, but now they were gone. He had had his workers triple their efforts to find out what the cards were, but he couldn't. It was almost as it that had disappeared…

The CEO shook his head, deciding that for now, he shouldn't think about uncertain matters. He had a tournament to run, opponents to defeat, and a rival to find. He placed his hands in his trench coat pockets before looking down at his brother.

"I'm heading to Battle City now Mokuba."

As the CEO walked off to the door, Mokuba raised a fist, "Hey, wait up. I'm commissioner remember? I gotta go and make sure no one else is cheating."

He started to run to catch up with his brother, but caught himself. He quickly turned back to the workers sitting in front of the computers that ran the holographic technology of Battle City, "If you detect another duelist using an Egyptian God card, notify me or Akela right away."

All of the workers replied, "Yes sir," in union as the brothers left.

* * *

Yami briefly began to wonder if this was how all Rare Hunters felt after a loss like this one had. The duel had been over not fairly quickly, but definitely not slow either. And to have those kinds of monsters attack you, ones that were rare much less powerful, well… it was enough to shock anyone to laying on the ground in a dazed state.

Yami walked over to the Rare Hunter, kneeling down and removing his deck from its slot. Glancing briefly at the owner, he wondered how these cards felt, knowing they had been stolen. He wondered how their owners felt, given they lost their treasured cards…

He began to shuffle through the deck, eventually coming across a familiar obsidian dragon card, "Ah, there it is." He gently removed it from the deck, looking down at the Hunter, wondering what he could do now. The card had been won, but not by him. So, what could he do? He doubted that the female duelist would just let Joey have back his card.

He heard a few muffled whispers before turning around, noticing that the girl was playing with something in her right ear. It was hidden pretty well by her black hair, but he could faintly make out a tiny KC on the earpiece. So, it was true… this was the duelist who worked for Kaiba…

As the female approached the duo, Yuugi solemnly held out the card, "Here; you won the card, you take it."

Surprisingly, the girl shook her head, holding up a palm, "I don't take other duelists cards. Part of my work deal."

She knelt down, picking the locator card out of the Rare Hunter's disk, "I do collect these, for Mr. Kaiba, but he never said I had to keep them." The girl held the locator card out to Yuugi, "I have a feeling you'll need it more."

Joey gave the girl a quizzical look, "But, don't you need dem? I mean, sure, you work for Kaiba, but you're still a duelist. So, you need da locator cards ta make it ta da finals."

The girl shook her head, "As long as I have one of these in my possession," she took a moment to hold up one of the green final slip cards, "then I also have access to the finals."

Joey's face grew grim, "So basically, you're already in." He sighed deeply as the girl nodded.

Both duelists' attention were drawn to Yuugi when they heard him grunt. Joey was the first to question him, "Sometin' wrong Yuge?"

The duelist didn't even nod, "Something's rubbing off on my fingers."

The female duelist gently reached forward, rubbing one of the cards gently between her pointer finger and thumb. She then withdrew them, rubbing them together before showing it to Yami and Joey. Both could see a faint glossy look on the girl's fingers, and Yami narrowed his eyes.

"These cards are marked!"

Joey eyes narrowed as well, "He was a cheat."

Yami took the cards in his hands, and ripped them clear apart, "Not anymore!"

All three duelists watched as the pieces of the cards fluttered to the ground, the female being the only one to hear a faint whisper.

"I lost…"

Gently, she nudged Yami, who followed her gaze, looking down at the Hunter.

"I failed…"

Joey seemed shocked for a moment as Yami's eyes widened, the Rare Hunter continuing to speak to himself.

"Forgive me master. I tried my best…" He suddenly sat up, "No, please, don't be angry…"

The Rare Hunter got to his feet, grabbing the sides of his head as he screamed. Yami's eyes widened, the duelist barely noticing that the female KC worker stepped in between him and the Hunter, like a shield.

"No, Master, don't… please, spare me…"

Joey leaned in toward his friend, "Yuugi, dat wacko's lost his mind!"

Yuugi only barely registered Joey's words, "I've seen this before…"

Suddenly, a bright light appeared on the Hunter's forehead, quickly changing shape to resemble an all-too familiar eye.

Yuugi's eyes widened in brief shock. _That's the Millennium Symbol…!_

Finally, after all the moaning he had done, the Rare Hunter finally spoke, only this time, his voice was different, darker, evil, "**_We meet again Pharaoh. Do you remember me? Actually, perhaps you don't, since you were trapped in the puzzle when I dueled little Yuugi._**"

Yami grimaced as he remembered that day, though it was vague, as his connection to the outside world had been weak. He did remember though, the heat of the fire, the flames licking at the walls of the warehouse like hungry dogs eating a meal. The collapsing beams, threatening to crush anything that lay beneath. And Yuugi, his lungs filled with smoke as he tried to complete the puzzle and make it out of there alive, trying to save both of them…

"**_Congratulations on defeating my Rare Hunter, though he was the weakest in my crew. My other minions are much more formidable._**"

Joey leaned back in toward his friend, "Yuge, what is with dis freakshow?"

"**_Pharaoh, I have waited for you for years. And finally after all this time, I will destroy you._**"

Yami's eyes widened briefly before he noticed the female duelist stepping in front of him, facing the Rare Hunter. She spoke, her voice commanding, powerful, unlike what it had been in the duel moments ago.

"Not likely while I'm around you traitor."

The possessed Hunter turned his head, "**_Ah, its been so long since I've seen you my friend. How are you?_**"

The female duelist clenched a fist, "Cut it. We both know there are no formalities that can ever be exchanged between us, not ever since what you did, and continued to do to this day."

Yami looked at the girl, "What do you mean?"

The girl looked back at him, "Can't you tell? The Hunter isn't in control of his body anymore."

Joey's eyes widened, "How can dat be possible?"

The Hunter smirked, "**_Heh, the Pharaoh should know, with what he possesses._**"

Yami noticed the Hunter's gaze drift down toward his pendant, the tri-colored duelist instinctively taking hold of the chain, "What do you know of my puzzle? And what does that have to do with you controlling this man?"

"**_Each of the Millennium Items has its own special ability, so Mind Control is a simple task with my Millennium Rod._**"

Yami grimaced, "No good can come from that power." His mind then drifted briefly back to what Ishizu had told him a few nights ago at the museum.

* * *

_"The events of the past will occur once again, and that same great evil will return to threaten the entire world."_

* * *

Yami's mind began piecing the puzzle together. _Whoever is controlling this Rare Hunter, he must be the great evil Ishizu spoke about…_

"**_Allow me to introduce myself. Remember my name… Marik…_**"

Yami took one step forward, moving to the side of the female duelist so he could try an say without actually speaking, _I can handle this._ He narrowed his eyes, "Marik. What it is you want from me Marik?"

"**_I want what belongs to me, and I'll take it using the strength of the Egyptian God cards._**"

Yami's face drew a quizzical expression, "Egyptian what?"

"**_Millennia ago, a trio of powerful beasts made Egypt itself quake beneath their feet. These Egyptian God monsters spread destruction throughout the world, until the Pharaoh sealed them away for all eternity. But when Pegasus created Duel Monsters, he resurrected these mighty beasts as cards. With these Egyptian Gods, I can destroy you and claim the power I deserve._**"

Yami reached for the chain on the pendant again, "You'll never claim the Millennium Puzzle."

The Hunter chuckled, "**_Hmm, you misunderstand, I want more than the power of the puzzle. I want the Pharaoh's power, the boundless energy of the ancient ruler himself. With it, no one will be able to stand in my way. I'll use the magic I gain to capture the Guardian and conquer the world. I will be unstoppable._**"

Yami thought that he saw the female duelist grimace lightly before he spoke, "You won't, not while I'm around Marik." He lifted his hand, pointing a finger at the Hunter, like he was accusing him of a crime, "I'm beginning to understand why Ishizu asked me to participate in Battle City. It's my destiny to stand between you and the evil powers you seek. And trust me," he drew a clenched fist toward his chest, "I will."

The Hunter laughed lightly, the sound sending a chill down Yami's back, "**_Then your destiny is easier said than done you fool._**"

Yami grimaced, feeling a bead of sweat fall down the side of his face, his mind already stressed out with the thoughts about defeating Marik that were racing through it. _I can't let Marik win, or who knows what darkness will come. He may possess the power of the Millennium Rod, but I have the strength of my puzzle. I'll beat him, no matter what…_

"**_Hmph, Pharaoh, your days are numbered, so enjoy the game while you still can, because your reign is coming to an end._**" As soon as those last words exited the Hunter's mouth, he collapsed, leaving the trio of duelists to wonder what they should do now.

Joey crossed his arms, "Man, I knew dis guy was a creep, but whoda guessed he was just a front for an even bigger creep?"

Yami couldn't help but smile at his friend before noticing that they were absent one person. He gazed around, looking for the female duelist that had been here earlier. Not seeing any sign of her, he clenched a fist; he had wanted to talk to her, try and figure out why she had helped them. More interestingly, how had she known where to find them before the start of the duel?

Joey noticed Yami was troubled, but soon figured out why, as he also noticed the girl was missing. He raised a hand, placing it over his eyes to shield them from the sun, "Wheredya suppose she coulda gotten to?"

Yami shrugged before pushing the matter of the KC duelist out of his head. He had more pressing matters to deal with. He gazed down at the card in his hand… first thing first, figure out who was going to keep Red-Eyes.

* * *

Akela sighed as she entered an alleyway, finally pulling the hood off of her head. She brushed her hair out, letting it fall loose before tying it back up in a ponytail. She wished she had known that the disguise would've been that stuffy. Then again, that would have been a nice thing to know days ago, when she still had her trinket.

She looked down at her upper arm, covered by the shirtsleeves, "Thanks a lot for warning me." She stopped before saying anything more, knowing that talking to that tattoo was pointless.

She felt a chill, and turned to look beside her, seeing the familiar spirit from earlier, "Any chance you came to cheer me up?"

Ty shook his head, crossing his arms over his chest, "_Only thing I can say that might be positive is well done in that duel. I must say, I've never seen you use your Lightsworns in that aggressive of a manner. You didn't even have to summon out Ehren in that last round._"

Akela sighed as she sunk down onto the ground, her knees folded up to her chest, arms behind her head, "The quicker I got done with that duel, the quicker that I would get out of there and the quicker my rage would have subsided."

Ty looked down at her, "_Look, Moss, Fang and I all know why you are angry. But you know better than us that you need to keep that temper of yours in check. Not just because it scares the living hell out of people and spirits, but also because your rage feeds the shadows, and the shadows feed you._"

Akela jumped in before Ty could say anymore, "And then the shadows will eat at my soul until they take control of my magic and I become a being of darkness." She looked at the spirit, arching an eyebrow, "Do I really need to get this lecture from you? It's bad enough I got it from Dad and his advisor when I was a kid."

Ty sat down cross-legged in front of Akela, "_I don't need to even finish the lecture; you do it for me. But, I only say it because Moss, Fang and I care for you like a sister. We don' want anything to happen to you._"

Akela briefly thought she heard someone call out 'liar' before looking up at the sky, "Ty, we've been over this. I already have said I care for all you like family, but I thought that another part of that was that you ALL agreed NOT to give me lectures anymore."

Ty raised his hands defensively, "_Okay, fine. Truth is, the gods sent me to tell you anyways. Even they say to watch your temper, and control your magic._"

Akela threw her hands up in exasperation, "So now I'm getting an earful from them too? Geeze, can't I catch a break?"

A beeping noise in Akela's pocket caused them both to look down as the female duelist pulled out the mobile device Kaiba loaned her. Though often used for tracking duel progress like a computer (which it was basically), it also served the basic texting function of cell phones.

Once again, Akela was thankful to Ishizu as she read the message from the infamous CEO. _Meet near the South Square ASAP. Watch your step so duelists don't challenge you._

Ty cocked an eyebrow playfully, "_Another message from your gentleman caller?_"

Akela's eyes grew near a dark maroon color as she glanced over, her fist raised, "Say that one more time and watch where my fist ends up."

Before she could say anymore, Ty vanished with a quick '_Good luck_' chirp as Akela pocketed the mobile device. She checked to make sure her duel disk was secure and her belts fastened so they wouldn't fall as she started to walk out of the alleyway. As she did so, her mind began to wander. _What does he want now?..._

* * *

And the fourth chapter is finished! I really apologize for taking so long with this one guys. Real life is a pain, but I guess that's why fanfiction and anime was invented. I also decided to make this chapter a tiny bit shorter to give you all a break; I think it was a bad idea for me to do almost 10,000 words in a chapter. I'll try and make the chapters a bit shorter.

Anyways, I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter. And Ty made another appearance. I am thinking to myself that you might be wondering who he is, but it is only a thought. If you want, PM or review with your guess of who Ty is, and I will possibly tell you if you are right. Don't want any spoilers getting out…

Anyways, please R&R, as I do appreciate reviews, and next chapter is due up soon.


	5. Chapter 5

5 equals a magic number so far in my story, as this is officially the fifth chapter. I feel good about this. Well, then again, I haven't seen a lot of reviews, but oh well, people are probably busy reviewing other stories. Its' no big. I don't care if I get reviews or not; I put these stories up for people to enjoy. I sincerely hope that you guys have enjoyed the story so far though.

_Italic: mental speak_

Recap: Akela managed to win her duel against Seeker's Exodia deck, and Yuugi ripped up the fake cards. Now, having also heard the name of their new adversary in this tournament, Yuugi has begun to wonder if possibly, Ishizu was telling the truth, that he has a new ally. But can Kaiba's new employee really be trusted? More so, knowing their enemy has Millennium power in his hands isn't really helping anybody's mood. Yuugi and Yami have also found out about the fabled Egyptian God monsters, unaware that Kaiba is already in possession of one. And now, Kaiba and Mokuba have joined the scene, hitting the streets of Battle City to get into the dueling action. What do the Rare Hunters have planned for the heroes next?

Disclaimer: Akela is my creation. Yu-Gi-Oh belongs to 4-Kids and Kazuki Takahashi (or whatever TV program is broadcasting this show).

* * *

**Chapter 5**

The CEO sighed to himself as he continued walking through the streets of Battle City, constantly looking down at the small monitor in his hand. It wasn't enough that Akela had disappeared earlier this morning, the first day of the tournament. No, it was also bad enough that she was late getting to the rendezvous point they had established in Battle City.

Kaiba wondered why it was exactly that he had agreed to take up that deal with Ishizu and Akela that night at the museum. Okay, so it wasn't enough that the Egyptian woman's gaze was enough to make a grown man scared. No, something else had happened; some strange feeling had thrust itself to the front of Kaiba's mind, telling him to agree to the deal.

That was the one thing he didn't understand though. The feeling he had gotten when he stood near Akela, actually looked at her… this feeling of trust, partnership almost, came flooding back into his memory. Something about the Egyptian girl screamed familiarity, but it was one thing Kaiba definitely wasn't interested in delving deeper into. He had to focus on winning Battle City and defeating his long-time rival with the very cards that could bring Exodia to his knees.

A small beeping sound emanated from the monitor, causing the CEO to look down. Sure enough, a little red dot had appeared on screen, and was quickly moving toward him. He stopped walking for a moment and looked around, half-expecting Akela to appear from some random alleyway. However, when that did not happen, the CEO drew a blank.

Was it possible his monitor was malfunctioning? No, he had double-checked the entire system before setting this whole thing in motion. Even something as small as a monitor would not have been overlooked. So, why wasn't Akela here now, if the monitor said she was close?

Kaiba lifted his head, allowing his gaze to sweep over the small town square he was standing in. No glimpses of familiar people came into view, until he did a double take, and saw a small mob of black spiky hair running toward him.

At first, Kaiba figured that Mokuba had seen a duel in progress, thought it was awesome, and then came to tell his brother about it. But even as a kid, Mokuba knew the only duels Kaiba found interesting were the ones he was participating in. But another glance told different; Mokuba looked anxious, and that told Kaiba all he needed to know.

His little brother had either seen a bunch of rule breakers that wouldn't listen, or possibly a ghost walking through walls.

Deciding the first thought was rational enough, Kaiba looked down at Mokuba as he approached, "Which way are they?"

Mokuba stopped short of the first word of his sentence, and instead just took off again in the direction he had come from. Without a word, Kaiba followed, his briefcase held tightly in hand.

* * *

Akela smirked lightly as she watched the fight unfold from her hiding place in the shadows. The two duelists had managed to scare off Mokuba, and at first, the girl had wanted to step in. However, a strange sense told her that she should hold off for a moment, and though she questioned, she listened anyway. She kept her body carefully concealed in the shadowy veil, her piercing red eyes locked onto the bickering duelists.

Even for a girl that seemed to want nothing more than peace, Akela loved the good old-fashioned fight. Fights were the spice of life; it kept things interesting, people going at each other's throats. But then again, when it came to fighting, Akela herself was an expert; at least, Ishizu thought so.

The Egyptian youth shook her head at the thought of the older museum curator. Of course the girl had thanked Ishizu multiple times for allowing her to stay at her family's house during the duration of the tournament, but even then, Akela felt 'alien', alone, a stranger. They may share the same cultural background, but both knew that they were as different as two people could be. Still, they got along at least well enough to the point that their worst screaming match was just a little above normal speaking voices.

The girl suddenly felt a brief disturbance in her deck, her mind returning to the present. She looked back up toward the two duelists, and then to the other two patrons of the street. Noticing how the elder of the new arrivals was apparently intimidating the duelist in a tank top, she decided she would get in on the fun.

Really give this guy a good _scare_, to put it nicely.

* * *

Kaiba narrowed his eyes angrily at the duelist standing a few feet from him. It was bad enough that there were people already disrespecting the rules of this tournament; now they were starting to pick on his little brother.

When it came to Mokuba's safety and well-being, everybody knew that nothing would stop Kaiba from acting as a shield, a protector of what was trying to harm his little brother. At first, Kaiba planned to just kick this guy out of the tournament. But, at seeing a familiar bystander appear from the shadows, he began formulating a new idea.

Trying to keep the ball rolling, Kaiba continued to speak to the rule breaker, "When you speak to my little brother like that, you dishonor the Battle City tournament, KC, and myself. And besides, I have very little patience for bullies."

The rule breaker cocked an eyebrow, looking directly at the CEO, "What's you problem?"

Now Kaiba knew that his new plan would really calm his anger down for a while. The CEO simply kneeled down, laying his briefcase on the concrete. He undid the silver straps keeping the lid clasped down, and turned it so that the rule breaker could see the collection of rare cards. The rule breaker's eyes lit up with excitement, which only hastened Kaiba's desire to put his plan in motion.

"It's time you learned to show some respect. I challenge you to a duel here and now. But just to show how nice I am, I'll let you use these cards to boost the power of your pathetic deck." The CEO crossed his arms, Mokuba moving off to the side of the alleyway to give the two duelists room.

The rule breaker smirked confidently as he walked to one side of the alley to face Seto Kaiba. Placing his duel disk on his arm, he looked up at the CEO, "With all these rare cards and my skill, there is no way I'll lose. Watch out Kaiba, you're setting yourself up for a fall."

Even though the duelists' arrogance was something to laugh at, Kaiba smirked as his plan for the duel again flashed through his mind. The other duelist, however, seemed puzzled, and arched an eyebrow as Kaiba's eyes gained a glossy look.

"I just need to play a single card, to teach you a lesson you won't forget." As soon as those words exited his mouth, the wind around the duel field picked up, Kaiba's trench coat billowing behind him. A bright light flashed as he drew the card from his deck, the rule breaker duelist taking a step back.

"I summon Obelisk the Tormentor." The words were spoken with such nonchalance that it would have made any duelist jealous. The rule breaker though, was completely in shock, his eyes widening as he began to step back.

The duelists' cards exploded from his deck as he fell down onto the ground, his body shaking as he only managed to get a few words out, "I've… never seen a card that powerful…"

Mokuba ran over and grabbed his brother's briefcase, struggling to catch up to Kaiba as the CEO walked off, his hands in his pockets, "Now I'll use my Egyptian god card on a real opponent. Let's find Yuugi."

* * *

Akela smirked as she crossed her arms over his chest, hopping down from her perch atop a fire escape. Landing steadily on her feet, she remained in the shadows as she walked the back way to go meet up with the Kaiba brothers. As she was heading there, she felt her deck call out again, and looked down at it before placing a hand over it.

The cards flashed yellow as one of her Lightsworn monsters appeared, one that was more human so it could talk to her, _"The gods wish you to attend a council with them and the spirit lords."_

Akela cocked an eyebrow, _"They're actually willing to host it in the spirit world this time? Why the sudden interest in recruiting Ty, Moss, and Fang?"_

The monster shrugged, _"Don't ask me. They just want you to meet them there as soon as you are able. But, what I can say is I think they want to include the spirit lords due to the fact of how you are all guardians, along with that mage."_

Akela nodded absentmindedly, _"Makes sense. Fine; tell them that I'll report there this evening. If not, then definitely tomorrow evening."_

The monster nodded before vanishing, Akela's cards ceasing their glow as she continued her walk. Seeing Kaiba not too far off, she raced to catch up. She raised a hand to wave to them as she called out, "Yo, Kaiba, Mokuba, wait up!"

Seeing the two Kaiba brothers stop walking and turn to face her, Akela quickened her pace, ignoring the glare Kaiba sent her way, "Where have you been? It may be the first day of the tournament, but we agreed to a rendezvous point half an hour ago."

Akela took in a breath as she looked at Kaiba, "Not exactly my fault. You saw my earlier duel; plus, I got sidetracked with a bunch of other duelists itching for a fight so they could get one of the green finals passes."

Holding up all of them though to show Kaiba none had been taken, he nodded, "Fine, I'll bite. But still, you agreed to follow my orders as long as you are working for me."

Akela placed a hand on her hip, "And I thought you agreed to give me some time to myself each day, and if I couldn't show up when you called, that I was attending to other business."

Kaiba rolled his eyes as Mokuba walked up to Akela, "You're not hurt though? You got away from that mob?"

Akela nodded, "It took some work and climbing a few fire escapes, but I lost them on the south side. Hopefully it will take them a while to find me again."

Kaiba turned out to look at the city, "Speaking of though, have you been able to find Yuugi after that duel with the Hunter?"

Akela shook her head, ignoring the fact that Kaiba wasn't facing her, "I've left him alone since then. I can't be tracking him every second of the day Kaiba; that's mostly your job. You assigned me to Rare Hunter eliminator; if you want me to do my job, then stop nagging me to find Yuugi for you."

The CEO groaned as Mokuba looked up at him, "Cut her some slack Seto; Akela is doing all she can. She can't do everything at once."

Kaiba sighed, "I know that Mokuba. Its just that a certain someone complains so much about having to do everything for me that its annoying."

Akela raised a fist, "Watch that mouth of yours Kaiba."

Kaiba arched an eyebrow, "Why, does it do tricks?"

Mokuba's face twisted into a smile as he burst out laughing, Akela and Kaiba not being able to help but smirk.

* * *

For a long time, he had often wondered what Joey found so special about his Red-Eyes Black Dragon card. Even as he held it in his hand, he still couldn't understand. Sure, he understood that owners could have bonds with their cards, but he couldn't even hope to understand how close those bonds were.

The spirit's eyes were transfixed on the card, Red-Eyes' scales shining a black obsidian, even on a piece of paper.

**_"I'm glad that Joey let us hang onto Red-Eyes Black Dragon; now its like, his heart is in our deck. No matter where we are, he'll be with us. And if we have to face off against Marik and his gang of Rare Hunters, we're going to need all the support we can get. I just hope that Joey can survive the tournament without his Red-Eyes."_**

Yami turned his head to face Yuugi, _"He can. Joey's a great duelist and he seems to get tougher with every duel he fights. He just has to keep believing in himself."_

Yuugi smiled at the spirit, **_"Yeah, Joey has been getting better since his last duel. And he defeated Espa Roba without his Red Eyes. Maybe we need his card to help us save the world from evil. Speaking of evil though, how will we know where Marik will strike next? We still don't even know what he looks like."_**

Before Yami could say anything in reply, an ominous laugh drew his attention off to the side of the park. From where he was standing, he could see a small figure dressed in a red and black jester outfit, complete with the shoes, hat, and face paint.

Yami couldn't help but question, "Who are you?"

The jester stood up, his face twisted into a smirk, "Greetings Yuugi. We've been looking for you."

That drew Yami's attention, as he took a step toward the jester, "Who's 'we'?"

The jester just pointed to his left, "You'll find out if you walk that way, 53 steps into that tent."

Yami turned his head to look in the direction the jester was pointing. Across the street, he could see a large green and yellow tent tied down by several long white pieces of rope. He only half-listened as the jester spoke again, his mind just trying to wrap around the thought of how a tent that huge was situated in the middle of one of the town parks.

"My master is waiting for you inside. It's in your best interest, you know." Yami turned back to look at the jester, not fazing as the circus performer bowed before jumping behind the bushes situated behind the tree.

Letting out a quiet sigh, the spirit turned back in the direction of the tent, and started walking. Turning his head both ways to make sure no cars were heading his way, he continued toward the tent, looking around curiously at all the different circus props situated inside.

Briefly noting how one of the props looked like a duel monster card, his eyes kept shifting over the room, "There's no one here."

A spotlight above the stage lit up, drawing the spirit's attention. Reading the sign aloud to himself, he was briefly surprised when the door of the prop box opened and the jester from earlier appeared.

Motioning with his hand, he spoke to the Pharaoh, "Enter here Yuugi. My master's waiting." Placing his hand over his chest as he bowed again, the jester vanished into the shadows, Yami stepping forward to follow. He climbed on top of the stage, walking inside the box as if it were just another doorway. The flaps of the box closed behind him as he did, the spirit not noticing a yell from behind as he was enveloped by the shadows.

"Yuugi!"

* * *

"That's weird…" Mokuba began hammering away at the keyboard on his monitor, a signal beeping continuously to alert him of a problem with the duel disks that he had programmed. However, when he noticed what the problem was, his eyes widened, turning his head to face the still bickering Kaiba and Akela.

"Seto! The tournament tracking system just lost Yuugi Mutou's signal! He's disappeared!"

The CEO seemed a bit surprised as he looked at his brother, "He's disappeared?"

Akela walked up behind Kaiba and thumped the back of his head, "He just said that. What you should have asked next was where was the last place that the monitor had his signal."

Kaiba narrowed his eyes at the girl before looking back at Mokuba, "That's impossible. Make sure the tracking system is working, now."

Mokuba nodded and began typing in a few instructions on the keyboard of his monitor, Kaiba turning his head as he became lost in his own train of thought.

_Hmm, Yuugi's ID duel disk sends out a constant signal. So wherever he is, his signal is being blocked somehow. But I'll find him…_

Akela narrowed her eyes at Kaiba, almost as if she had heard his thoughts in her own head, _You better hope you do Kaiba…_

* * *

The spirit had to admit, he was getting a little impatient. He didn't know how long he had been trapped inside the black box, but so far, there hadn't been any traps that might have been able to hurt him. When it seemed like a year had gone by though, the flaps finally opened, and the spirit stepped out.

Looking around the room, he noticed that it didn't have much in it except for a few unpacked boxes, a desk, and an old computer monitor sitting atop it.

_Where am I?_ His train of thought was interrupted when the computer's screen lit up, a robotic voice emanating from it, _'Hacking into Battle City Database. Dueling Profile, Yuugi Mutou. Dueling Level, Five Stars. Rarest Card, Dark Magician.'_

Yami's eyes widened slightly as he noticed his duel profile appear on the screen as the computer rattled off information. The screen zoomed in on his Dark Magician card, before it suddenly became enveloped in a dark red aura. The image suddenly changed to a similarly styled Dark Magician, only it had silver hair, tan skin, and red armor.

Yuugi's eyes were immediately drawn to the image of his card, "My Dark Magician!" Red pixels spilled out of the computer, and the same image of the other magician appeared, using the holographic technology KC had invented.

The magician looked down at the spirit, smirking evilly as it spoke, "I've been waiting for you. You are not worthy of having me in your deck, so prepare to lose me forever. You're not the only duelist with my power in your deck, and you're certainly not the best." He held out his staff, pointing it at Yami, "It's time you met the real master of the Dark Magicians."

Yami smirked, his body suddenly filled with the desire to find out who the duelist was, "All right, enough with these silly games. "

As if on command, another figure stepped out of the shadows, a Duel Disk perched on his left arm. The Dark Magician card currently rendered in holographic technology was placed in defense mode, another one placed between his pointer finger and thumb. He wore a red suit, with a black and blue tie, and a similarly colored mark. A red hat sat atop his head, his eyes narrowed in amusement.

"Welcome Yuugi Mutou. I am known as the illusionist Arkana. Soon your favorite card will be dueling for me. Only a true master of magicians is worthy of holding the power of the Dark Magician in his deck."

Yami narrowed his eyes, "That's enough Arkana!"

Arkana stepped forward, "Sorry Yuugi, I know that it's tough to think of your precious Dark Magician in another duelists' hands. I, however, challenge you to a duel here and now. The winner gets to add the loser's Dark Magician to their deck."

Yami smirked, "And I accept your challeng. Even you must know that when a duelist builds his or her deck, he chooses his favorite from many different types of cards. But sometimes, the card chooses the duelist. The two are connected, and sometimes the duelist can tap into the card's true power. Each card is chosen by the heart of the cards, and the Dark Magician has chosen me."

As he was saying all this, the Pharaoh removed his deck from his belt pouch, and began shuffling the cards, not even flinching under the glare Arkana sent his way. The illusionist was surprised though, when Yami pulled the Dark Magician card from his deck, the monster being rendered in holographic technology beside him.

"He has never let me down, and I put my complete faith in him."

"So its true; the great Yuugi Muto never backs down from a challenge," Arkana mused as their Dark Magicians disappeared. "Very impressive. But this room is a little cramped, don't you think? Fortunately I know of a special duel ring close by. Follow me."

Bowing in a way-too-similar manner to the jester from earlier, Arkana motioned to the stairs leading into the basement below. Without question, the Pharaoh followed the illusionist down the staircase.

"Hurry, its almost curtain time. I have special orders from my superiors to make this a real spectacle."

Yami stopped walking for a moment, his curiosity getting the better of him, "What do you mean you have orders from your superiors? Just who is it that you are working for Arkana?"

The illusionist looked at the Pharaoh from the corner of his eye, "Relax Yuugi. Forget about what's backstage, and just worry about me." He let out an evil laugh as he placed his pointer finger on the brim of his hat.

_Could this deranged showman be working for Marik? If he is, there could be much more at stake here than just my Dark Magician…_ Yami narrowed his eyes at the illusionist, becoming slightly intrigued as they reached the bottom of the stairs.

Arkana motioned to the door, "Ta-da. Behind that door, lies my special dueling arena." The illusionist walked calmly over, opening the large steel door as the Pharaoh followed him in.

For an underground arena, the Pharaoh had to admit it was impressive. The walls were patterned with large steel beams to support the structure, and large maroon red curtains hung from the ceiling. A large oval shape was indented in the center, surrounded by silver beams to form the square shape a duel arena normally took on when the holographic systems were out. A table was placed smack in the center, the Eye of Udjat carved into the stone.

"I had this dueling ring specially created for this match. It's almost time to raise the curtain and start the show." Arkana walked forward, leaving a perplexed Pharaoh behind him.

The spirit looked around the room, taking in the surrounding while also silently assessing his dueling opponent. While it seemed Arkana did not appear mentally unstable, there was something about him that screamed deranged. The Pharaoh could definitely see why Marik would hire this man, if that fact was indeed true.

"I do hope you enjoy a good matinee Yuugi. As you can see, we're completely alone. There are no screaming fans and no cameras. Yes, it's the perfect setting for a performance with so much on the line. We'll duel according to Battle City tournament rules. But thanks to our location, not even Kaiba knows we are here. Now, let's shuffle our decks and let the show begin."

Both Arkana and the Pharaoh placed their respective decks on the table in the middle of the arena. The illusionist began to shuffle his cards, the Pharaoh narrowing his eyes as he did the same.

"I'm watching you Arkana. Don't try any sleight of hand."

Arkana smirked, "Card tricks are strictly for amateurs Yuugi Muto."

"Just to be sure, I'll cut your deck."

"Of course."

Arkana and the Pharaoh pushed their decks to the center of the table, taking each other's in their hand as they cut the decks in half.

As they did so, Arkana drew back to look at Yuugi, "You know, there is an old saying among high rollers and card sharks. Always trust your opponents, but only after you've cut their deck."

Yuugi grunted as he finished cutting Arkana's deck, "Here's another. Never trust a masked man."

Holding his hands out in a proud manner, Arkana took back his deck, "I'm offended Yuugi. We are alike, you and me. We both play to win, of course in this duel, you will find there is an extra downside to losing."

The Pharaoh only had a moment to think before he felt the floor moving beneath him, as it pulled him to one side of the duel arena. The table was lowered into the ground, as two leg locks popped out of the side of the arena where the duelists were standing. Securely locking themselves around Arkana's legs, as well as the Pharaoh's, the latter narrowed his eyes.

"No… what are you planning Arkana?"

"Relax, we're both locked in, which means neither of us can escape. See, there is an extra twist to this duel. We're not just playing for what's inside our decks, we're also playing for what's inside your mind."

As if on command, two large cyan blue disks appeared out of the sides of the arena, one for each duelist.

"What's that?" The Pharaoh looked at the disk with the slightest bit of fear in his eyes, before hearing the evil laugh Arkana had let loose.

The illusionist pointed at the disk, "It's a dark energy disk Yuugi, and I wouldn't get too close. One touch, and your mind is banished to the shadow realm. The rules are really quite simple though. See the numbers above the disk?"

The Pharaoh looked over, and saw that Arkana was right. Perched above the disk were four numbers, each one standing for one thousand of a duelists' life points.

Just to see if he was right though, the Pharaoh looked at Arkana, "I see; those are life points. The closer you get to zero, the closer the disk gets to you."

Arkana nodded, "Precisely. And then you can say hello to the Shadow Realm. Now, look down between your feet, and you'll see each of us has a key box."

The Pharaoh looked down, and saw that a dark yellow and red bow had appeared out of the floor. He could also see a life point meter on the top, "A key box?"

Arkana nodded, "Yes. Inside each box is a key to the locks around your legs. Your box displays the life points of your opponent, and it will only open if you win the duel. Only then can you save yourself."

The Pharaoh narrowed his eyes as he looked at the illusionist, "You're insane."

"Think of it as a hope chest really, because that key is your only hope." Arkana let out another evil laugh.

The Pharaoh closed his eyes, "What kind of person would toy with someone else's mind? Are you some kind of demented madman?"

"No," Arkana replied, "I am a man who is undefeated."

Yami narrowed his eyes again, "Not today. You've met your match, so its time to duel Arkana!"

The two duelists held out their arms as their disks activated, holo imagers on the sides of the arena lighting up as the technology activated.

"It's show time!"

"Then draw your cards!" Yami yelled back at Arkana, drawing the first five cards of his deck.

"As you wish Yuugi," the illusionist mused, smirking as he glanced at the cards in his hand.

* * *

"Have you tried every option of finding him? Have you backed up every system? Re-routed the trackers to try and hone in on his signal?"

Kaiba turned to face Akela as the two of them, along with Mokuba, stepped onto the bridge of the main KC Battle City control room, "I've got every program available running a tracker system to try and find Yuugi's duel disk."

Mokuba nodded, "Yeah, but whoever managed to hide Yuugi's disk probably wired the area where they are with a program that has a very specifically designed firewall. It would take some serious hacking to get into it."

Kaiba nodded as well, "The only trick is, without a connection to KC, Yuugi's duel disk won't function."

Akela placed her forefinger and thumb on her chin, "So that means that whoever trapped Yuugi has their own computer system that runs the same programming you are to help the duel disks function properly."

Kaiba looked at the girl, who currently had her hood pulled down so he could actually see her face, "That would be my best guess. So, all it might take to locate him would be to single out all independently operating computer networks running in Battle City."

Akela looked up at the Battle City monitor screen, "But if what you say is true, and this person doesn't want to be found, it could be possible that they found a way to also block the signal that their computer system is sending out."

Mokuba looked at her, "If that's the case, then it's going to take a whole lot of work to locate Yuugi this time."

"Search for every computer system in Battle City that is compatible with Kaiba Corp's dueling system, and make it snappy," Kaiba instructed.

"Right." Each of the girls chimed back the word at the same time as their fingers began hammering away at their keyboards. Several red dots were flashing up on the duel monitor.

"Isolate any systems that refuse to identify themselves to our network." Obeying their next instructions, the workers typed in a few more keys, several of the red dots starting to disappear.

Even while Mokuba spoke, Kaiba's eyes were transfixed on the monitor, "I'll hit the streets. Just radio me when you find him."

As the younger Kaiba brother raced out to the elevator, Seto turned to face Akela, "Do you mind going with him? He can handle himself I know, but after that last fiasco…"

Akela nodded, placing a hand on Kaiba's shoulder, "I got you covered. Don't worry, I'll bring him back safe." Quickly following the younger Kaiba into the elevator before the door closed, the two of them headed down to the lobby, Akela turning on the transmitter in her ear in case Kaiba decided to give them a call.

* * *

The Pharaoh grimaced as he examined his current dueling situation, the odds not seeming to be in his favor. His Dark Magician was currently bound by the trap card Nightmare's Chains, and Yami himself had just suffered a direct attack from Arkana's red Dark Magician, which he had summoned not long ago.

What the Pharaoh had failed to notice was the pained look that appeared on Dark Magician's face when the former was attacked. The monster knew it could only just look on, but it wanted nothing more than to escape and defend its master.

The dark energy disk had moved closer, the fear undistinguishable in the Pharaoh's eyes. While it sat at 1500, still a fair distance away, it did little to stop the Pharaoh from panicking. He knew what was at stake here; not just his magician, but his Millennium Puzzle as well.

Arkana had said he started working for Marik when the latter promised he would restore the illusionists' lost love to him, after she had abandoned him years ago following a performance accident. And due to his love for the girl, Arkana had willingly decided to serve Marik, not even thinking twice about what it might lead to in the future.

Arkana held his hands up in the air, "I'm almost ready for my grand finale Yuugi, and it's worth sticking around for. I don't want to ruin the surprise for you, but let's just say Marik will be extremely pleased. You, on the other hand, probably won't, but why spoil it? Now its time for you to make your final move."

Wordlessly drawing a card from his deck, Yami assessed the situation, _If I can't free my Dark Magician, Arkana's got me…_

* * *

The Kaiba brother took in heavy breaths as he and Akela raced along the streets, surprised that the girl was actually choosing to leave her hood down. She had told Kaiba that during the tournament, she wanted to keep her identity a secret, but either duelists were too preoccupied to challenge her, or they just didn't recognize her without the hood.

Either way, he had an extra pair of eyes helping him search for Yuugi, and he was grateful for that. He probably wouldn't be able to find the young duelist on his own. He wasn't sure what it was, but Akela just seemed to have a natural sense of direction when it came to Yuugi. Somehow, she just knew where to find him, no matter where he was. But even this time, it seemed she was having a bit of trouble.

Little did Mokuba know, the reason she was having trouble was only something for Akela to know. The girl looked at the Kaiba brother before turning her attention back to the streets to search for the tri-colored duelist. _Mokuba, there is so much more going on in this tournament that neither you nor your brother could comprehend. In fact, not even Ishizu could, or the Pharaoh. If only I could tell someone though, it might actually make things easier…_

The girl got ready to turn a corner and race down a street parallel to Mokuba's, but nearly fell over when the boy stopped right in front of her. Getting ready to chew him out, she turned, only to see two other people racing toward herself and Mokuba.

The Kaiba brother and Egyptian teen began running as well, meeting the other two citizens halfway. The girl with short brunette hair seemed familiar, when it all suddenly came back to Akela. However, she still wasn't sure she had heard the girl's name right the last time they met, so she kept quiet as Mokuba spoke first, after the situation with Yuugi was explained.

"Relax. My brother, Akela and I have been working on tracking him. We think we may have found where he was taken by whoever kidnapped him. We're heading there right now."

Motioning to Akela behind him, Tea arched her eyebrows in mild shock, "What timing."

The old man standing next to Tea, whom Akela did not recognize, spoke next, "Then lead the way and we'll follow."

Mokuba nodded, and looked up at Akela, "Where did big brother say to go from here?"

Akela lifted her wrist, pulling out the monitor she had in her pocket. Taking a look at the map, she pointed, "That way. He's somewhere in the middle south side."

Mokuba nodded, turning back to Tea and the older man, "Let's hurry then."

Without another word, the group of four took off, Akela making sure to keep close to Mokuba so she could keep an eye on him like she had promised Kaiba.

While running, she heard a small voice in her head, and focused just enough to be able to listen to what it had to say. _You found him, good. The gods were actually going to give you a hint as to where he is, but they also saw that you located him._

Akela mentally nodded. _Somehow we managed; it was a bit hard though, considering the computer system originally didn't want to identify itself to us._

The spirit voice chuckled. _I'm guessing that's where Mokuba's hacking skills came in handy?_

Akela laughed back. _You'd be guessing correctly there. If you want, hang around. I could use someone I trust to keep me sane right now._

The spirit spoke again, his voice sounding a bit confused. _What's wrong?_

Akela mentally shrugged. _Just a funny feeling I've been getting ever since we located Yuugi on the monitor. I can tell that it has something to do with the shadows… I just don't know what yet._

The spirit took a moment to think of what to say next. _Well, let's just hope that wherever Yuugi is, he doesn't lose the duel._

Akela nodded. _I agree with you there._

* * *

So, how was this chapter? I really hoped you guys enjoyed this. I apologize for being so late with it. I had a lot of studying to do for finals at my school. I am planning on getting the next chapter up soon. I hope you guys enjoyed.

Please R&R! And please no flames! I hate those things!


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